Bridge Construction Completed, Gayo Lues Residents No Longer Isolated

Residents of Dabun Gelang subdistrict in Gayo Lues Regency have finally been reconnected after the construction of a connecting bridge was completed. This infrastructure serves as a vital access route that was previously severed due to flash floods at the end of 2025.

The bridge’s construction has reopened mobility for residents who were isolated for weeks. Economic activities, education, and healthcare services are now operating normally.

Agus Salim, a resident of Aih Bobo village, stated that the bridge has long been the main access for the community to carry out their activities. This route is used to go to school, trade, and seek medical treatment at the hospital in Blangkejeren.

“Previously, residents had difficulty leaving the area for nearly a month. Using an alternative route required a long detour, and even that could only be traversed when the water was not overflowing,” said Salim on Thursday.

The 200-metre-long bridge was severely damaged after being struck by wooden debris carried by the flash flood currents. Half of the bridge’s structure was broken, making it impassable for vehicles or pedestrians.

This condition isolated several villages, including Badak, Uning Sepakat, Kendawi, Uning Gelung, Pangur, Rigep, Panglime Linting, Pepalan, Sangir, and Badak Uken.

To provide emergency access, residents, along with TNI and Polri personnel, built a wooden bridge through mutual cooperation. This effort served as a temporary solution before the construction of a permanent bridge.

The government, through the Ministry of Public Works, then constructed a temporary concrete bridge on the side of the damaged old bridge. That bridge was officially put into use on 12 February 2026.

The presence of this bridge accelerates the recovery of community activities while ending the isolation of the area post-disaster.