Flood washes away 1,000-year-old bridge

WITHYPOOL, England, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- A 1,000-year-old stone bridge over the Barle River in southwestern England was washed away by floodwaters, officials said.

More than three-quarters of the 50-meter-long (164 feet) bridge, a "clapper bridge" made of rock slabs stretched across stone piers and known as the Tarr Steps, was swept away by the rain-swollen river, The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.

Two steel cables designed to support the bridge were snapped by the force of the water on the 7-mile-long river, which was 10 feet above normal levels, the newspaper said.