On 14 August 2018, at around 11:30 local time (9:30 UTC), a 209-metre (686 ft) section of the Ponte Morandi, centred on the westernmost pillar[15] and crossing the Polcevera stream and an industrial area of ​​Sampierdarena, collapsed during a torrential rain storm. Eyewitnesses reported that the bridge was struck by lightning before it collapsed.[15] Between 30 and 35 cars and three trucks were reported to have fallen from the bridge.[12] The initial hypotheses are that a structural weakness or a landslide caused the collapse.[16][17]