A drone has captured a series of terrifying footage of Chinese
engineers working 590 feet above a steep canyon.
They are working hard to transform a wooden suspension bridge in Hunan,
central China, into a glass walkway.
Currently, a wooden overpass links two peaks of Stone Buddha Mountain in
Shiniuzhai Geopark. After completion, the 984 foot long construction
will become the world's first suspension made entirely of glass,
reported People's Daily Online.
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It is scheduled to be completed by October 1, when China celebrates its
National Day with a week-long public holiday.
Part of the bridge had already been replaced with a glass walkway in
2014, attracting hoards of fearless tourists.
However, the whole bridge will now be converted into a see-through
mountain pass.
Drone footage of the bridge shows that the walkway towers above the
canyon floor below.
It looks dangerously small compared to the vastness of the mountains
around it.
11 people are part of the engineering team in charge of converting the
bridge, which has to be completed entirely by hand.
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To make the transformation, the engineers must reinforce the bridge
structure with additional steel cables, remove the existing wooden
planks and secure the double-thick glass panes into place.
At times, the only thing that separates them from the plunge below are
the suspension wires under their feet.
The arduous project is incredibly difficult thanks not only to its
height but also because the structure is based on a suspension bridge.
This means that every time someone walks along the bridge, it will
wobble slightly, potentially causing discrepancies in measurements.
According to the engineers, the team is working from 7am to 7pm daily to
complete the project in time and to the high safety standards required.
One engineer, Yang Guohong said: 'No matter how the tourists jump on the
bridge we built, it will be fine.
'The steel structures beneath the bridge is incredibly dense so even if
the glass gets broken, visitors won't fall down.'
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To show this, the engineers are even happy to have their photos taken
while lying down on the bridge for a rest.
In fact, the special glass is 25 times stronger than regular window
glass and weighs a hefty 140 kilograms (22 stones). Four people are
required to lift each pane as it's created to stay in shape and
withstand impact.
The amazing construction has already been dubbed 'hero bridge' because
of the amount of courage required to cross it.
In recent years, glass-bottomed walkways have become incredibly popular
for Chinese thrill-seekers.
More and more tourism sites are constructing viewing platforms over
steep vertical drops to attract visitors.
Earlier this year, a viewing platform in Chongqing, south-western China,
became the world's longest cantilever walkway with a glass bottom.
It's a breath-taking 2,356 feet drop to the ground below.
Another bridge is currently under construction in Zhangjiajie, Hunan. It
will be an astounding 984 feet above the canyon.
The 1,247 foot long bridge will be able to accommodate 800 people at any
one time when complete.
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