BEIJING - The captain and crew of a barge that slammed into a bridge and caused it to collapse have been detained in southern China, state media said Sunday.

Rescue workers were still searching for nine people believed to be on the bridge at the time who are missing, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The six suspects were detained because their barge, loaded with sand, hit the 1,600-meter-(yard)-long bridge, causing about 200 meters (yards) of it to fall into the water, Xinhua reported, citing police.

Surveillance videos showed that four vehicles carrying seven people and two bridge workers were on the bridge when it collapsed. Divers and search and rescue boats have yet to locate the vehicles.

The bridge was built in 1988 and runs over the Xijiang River, a major tributary of the Pearl River.