One of the most magnificent monuments of nature, the “Theogefyro” natural bridge in Epirus, has collapsed, according to epirusgate.blogspot.gr.
Area residents saw the fallen bridge and called the pertinent authorities. The fall of the natural bridge is attributed to the heavy rainfall over the last few days.
The president of the nearby Litino village Panagiotis Katsoulis told ERT radio that there were no signs that the bridge would collapse. Now, he said, the disaster is complete and the nearby chapel is in danger as well.
“Theogefyro” in Greek translates to “God’s bridge”. The natural bridge was formed as the wild waters of Kalamas river ate up the rock underneath.
Theogefyro was an arched stone bridge 3 to 4 meters wide and 20 meters high. A unique creation of nature. Below the bridge runs the raging Kalamas river, the longest river of Epirus with a distance of 115 kilometers.
The local legend is that a woman left her newborn baby at the side of the river and crossed over on a wooden bridge so as to visit a nearby monastery. A storm broke out though and the river bloated and dragged the wooden bridge away. The woman pleaded with God to help her return to her child in time to feed it. Suddenly, the waters receded and the bridge was formed, and that’s how the locals got the name “God’s Bridge”.
According to another legend, a rock was detached from an earthquake and wedged into the narrowest point of the ravine, thus forming the stone bridge.
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