The Kandawgyi Lake and Kandawgyi Park provide an oasis amid the sprawling concrete city and are cherished by residents of Yangon for their natural beauty.

A vital part of this enclave is a wooden bridge, constructed around the Kandawgyi Lake.

It is an important part of the park’s beauty and many find strolling along this bridge relaxing as the cool wind refreshes the stress of city life.

But all this is in danger of tumbling down as the bridge is badly in need of repair. Even a casual stroll can be hazardous.

The bridge, which measures over 6000 meters in length from the gate of the Signature restaurant to the gate at the Karaweik Palace, encircles the lake.

While parts of the bridge are being repaired, it is quite apparent that a whole lot more has to be done if it is to regain its former glory.

The writer went for a stroll last Monday on the bridge when she noticed a family observing the state of disrepair the bridge was.

They made a 180-degree turn and walked away from the bridge as they had children with them and did not want to risk the lives of the little ones or theirs.

An elderly lady, who was going for a walk on the bridge, described aptly the condition of the bridge. “I’ve come for a walk. But, the wood is falling off from the bridge and it’s looking rather dangerous. When you step on one side of the plank, the other side rises. You have this fear that you might your face smashed by the rising plank. It seems like you might have to risk your life while walking on the bridge,” she said.

The bridge is riddled with thousands of holes and the wood that is used to fix them up is also beginning to rot and giving out a squeaky sound while swaying when a person walks over it.

People coming for strolls can no longer enjoy their walks as they have to be careful and watch if the bridge might come down crashing.

People I spoke to said that they have to look down and walk with caution on the bridge.

One staff member at the Kandawgyi Park said, “The bridge is severely damaged. But, the middle section of the bridge has been repaired.”

He then asked me to take a stroll on the bridge, which I promptly did.

When I walked to the end of the bridge, I found that repairs had been done only to parts that were visible to the public from the road.

But the parts of the bridge that were hidden from view were left unrepaired.

It is apparent that the bridge was repaired in the middle part which is clearly visible to people staying at the Kandawgyi Hotel .

In the other parts of the bridge that is a little farther from the hotel, one can spot holes and broken wood. The place is definitely very dangerous for young children.

Kandawgyi Lake bridge was repaired in 2015 and 2016 and another round of repairs is scheduled for 2017-18 fiscal year.

U Ko Ko Lin, head of the Gardens Department, Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) told The Myanmar Times, “The Kandawgyi wooden bridge is under the YCDC’s Gardens Department. The budget has been provided to repair the whole bridge in 2017-18 fiscal year. Currently, we are redrawing the design of the bridge. We will authorise the repairs to the Department of Engineering [Roads and Bridges] and they will complete the reconstruction within this year.” 

– Translation by Kyaw Soe Htet and Khine Thazin Han