ADVERTISEMENTA bridge was evacuated and closed off in Paris after a section collapsed under the weight of lovers’ padlocks.
Couples have been attaching them to the Pont des Arts and throwing the key into the Seine as a romantic gesture.
Around 2.40m of fence collapsed inwards – rather than into the river – late on Sunday afternoon, police told AFP.
The pedestrian bridge, which links the Palais du Louvre and the Institut de France, was re-opened later on Sunday (June 8) evening, according to the mayor of Paris.
The collapse comes after two US women – Lisa Anselmo and Lisa Taylor Huff – launched a campaign for the love locks to be removed.
Their petition has attracted around 7,000 signatures.
A blog post accompanying the campaign launch reads: “The delicate Pont des Arts has become a freakish glut of indistinguishable metal lumps, and worse, is now in mortal danger. Poor, lovely bridge.
“And what about all those keys you’re tossing into the Seine? Did you think about that, my tourist lovebirds? That can’t be good for the health of the river. But what do you care? It’s not like you live here; it’s just a photo op [sic] to you.
“To sum up, dear travellers from other lands, kindly unlock your love and lift the weight of it from the shoulders of the Parisians. Save Paris’s frail, old bridges. That’s a much more loving act, don’t you think?”
Multimedia gallery
#[View the story “Heavy heart? Paris bridge panel falls under weight of ‘love locks’” on Storify]Heavy heart? Paris bridge panel falls under weight of ‘love locks’
A Paris bridge was closed off after a section collapsed under the weight of lovers’ padlocks.
Read more: http://bit.ly/1s029w5
We hope you enjoy our selection of photos and tweets on the subject.
Storified by euronews· Mon, Jun 09 2014 11:39:28
Here is a video of the bridge, produced before part of it collapsed:
Pont Des Arts Parisadi1974sal
And an image of the collapsed panel:
Plombé par les "cadenas d’amour", le Pont des Arts est de nouveau ouvert http://t.co/MOXMvs1mPV http://t.co/V1kTfPW5XDCulturebox
This tweet, posted on Monday morning, shows the panel still sealed off.
ADVERTISEMENT"El amor todo lo puede"
Cerrado el Pont des Arts en París por el excesivo peso de los "candados del amor" http://t.co/jEvYBMDolaRubén González
These pictures illustrate well the sheer number of padlocks attached to the bridge:
Paris : le grillage s’effondre sous le poids des cadenas, le pont des Arts évacué http://t.co/AqV9dJoBVa @eric_sennse http://t.co/lvwTlwQcz5Le Parisien | Paris
Paris : les « cadenas d’amour » font tomber une grille du pont des Arts – http://t.co/i7k8Gd2uga http://t.co/F7jNYxfvdcBruno Guglielminetti
This tweet appears to show Paris workers clearing the padlocks away. Direction – the tip!
ADVERTISEMENTLes services de la Ville de #Paris coupent des cadenas du Pont des Arts. Direction la déchetterie. http://t.co/QXulcbHYvhBastien Hugues
Cierran el Pont des Arts en París por el excesivo peso de los "candados del amor" http://t.co/zxd0HT15uYanna maria iglesia