The Bombing of Lužane - the Bridge and Civilian Casualties

On 16 April 1999, NATO bombed the bridge over the Južna Morava near the village of Lužane, killing 6 civilians.

Systematic destruction of bridges

This was part of NATO's strategy of systematically destroying all the bridges in Serbia. The aim was to completely paralyse the country's traffic and economy.

Victims on the bridge

Six civilians were killed while crossing the bridge:

• Milovan Đorđević (64 years old, farmer)
• Stana Đorđević (62 years old, his wife)
• Dragica Pavlović (55 years old)
• Ljubiša Marković (47 years old, tractor driver)
• Radmila Jovanović (39 years old)
• Dejan Nikolić (23 years old)

Economic consequences

The destruction of the bridge isolated several villages:

• 15 villages with no access to a hospital
• The school became inaccessible to 200+ children
• Farmers unable to transport their produce

Civilian use of the bridge

The bridge was exclusively civilian infrastructure, used by farmers, schoolchildren and the local population. It had no military use whatsoever.