Italy PM inaugurates reconstructed Genoa bridge

With a rainbow as a backdrop, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte inaugurated a newly constructed replacement bridge Monday in Genoa.

But families of those killed when the Morandi Bridge collapsed boycotted the event, along with the firefighters who pulled many of the 43 dead from smashed cars and trucks.

Two years ago this month, a stretch of the Morandi Bridge suddenly gave way in a violent rainstorm, sending vehicles plunging to the dry riverbed below.

The new structure - a key artery for the northwestern Italian port city - was erected thanks to round-the-clock construction, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rain drenched the new bridge, stopping just before the ceremony which started with a recitation of the names of the dead.

The families of the dead agreed to meet Italian President Sergio Mattarella privately but announced they were skipping the actual ceremony.

They're upset that the company which maintained Morandi Bridge will still run the new structure for a while more,  even though poor maintenance is being investigated as a possible cause of the collapse.

Nine Italian air force jets flew in formation over the bridge, trailing smoke in the red, white and green colours of the country's flag.

Prosecutors are probing what caused Morandi Bridge to collapse on Aug. 14, 2018, on the eve of Italy's biggest summer holiday.