Toni Ruttimann: The Bridge-Builder
Meet Toni Ruttimann, the bridge-builder. He can be, literally, bringing two worlds together; one community at a time. Toni has built over 600 bridges worldwide. He does which for the people.
What brought you to Indonesia?
The desire of being useful to villagers in need of a bridge, in addition to the offer of donated steel pipe in Cilegon by the Argentinean pipe company Tenaris.
in addition to where are you coming from?
I was born in addition to raised in Switzerland, in a tiny village called Pontresina within the Swiss Alps.
How did your name Toni ‘El Suizo’ come about?
which was how the peasants within the jungle of Ecuador called me coming from the very beginning. In Spanish, ‘El Suizo’ means ‘The Swiss’.
You travel to numerous places; can be which true which you only bring your essentials in two tiny bags for all your travelling needs?
Yes, long ago I have reduced my personal belongings in addition to office equipment to what I can carry with me. I believe which can be a not bad habit. which takes some practice, however can be essential since I am a migrant worker; permanently moving coming from bridge to bridge, in addition to on buses, cars or ojek.
You build bridges in places which have been destroyed by natural disasters. Tell us a little bit about your experience doing This specific in different countries. What countries have you built bridges for? How many bridges have you built in total?
We have built 77 bridges in Cambodia, 36 in Indonesia, about 200 bridges in Ecuador in addition to many more countries. Some are in progress, too. Please see the table for a complete analysis.
What kind of bridges do you build?
On one hand, steel suspension bridges for persons, motorcycles in addition to three-wheel vehicles. On the different hand, bridges of love between humans of so many different places in addition to positions.
What are they made of?
They are made of sacrifice in addition to love by all those involved. Structurally, nowadays they all consist of donated steel pipe by the company Tenaris, of used steel cables recovered coming from the tourist cable cars within the Swiss mountains, of steel plates donated by individuals or sometimes government or companies, depending on the country.
This specific kind of passion to help people in need must have come coming from an experience. What prompted you to start building bridges for destitute places?
Some people need an entire earthquake to wake them up. I am one of these. which was the earthquake of 1987 in Ecuador, which I saw on the TV news, two weeks before graduating coming from high school. The night of the graduation I went to Ecuador, determined to help people, in whatever way possible. Once there, I saw what which meant for entire villages to be cut off after their bridges had been blown away by the earthquake in addition to the following mud avalanches. So, I found a way to build a simple bridge with the poor peasants themselves, in addition to then another in addition to then another.
Do you work for free?
Yes. I work for free. in addition to more importantly, I work for people.
Where did you learn about bridge-building?
within the earthquake area, jungle in addition to oilfields of Ecuador.
Can you please tell our readers how the system works, coming from the demand – how you determine which area/country needs a bridge – to getting the materials in addition to the people needed to build the bridge; what can be the process like?
As for countries, I just follow my inner voice in addition to go. Once inside a country in addition to having obtained permission coming from the (usually top level) government, I find a local right-hand man who can be dedicated enough to serve the people, with the appropriate character in addition to willing to follow me with my system. In parallel, I assemble in addition to train a team of three to four pipe welders, in addition to find a loaned workshop, where they do the welding in addition to prefabrication of the bridge kits. In Indonesia This specific can be today inside one of the Holcim cement plants.
Then I go with my local right-hand man to search in addition to find the places which need a bridge. which’s a lot of patient detective work, a lot of walking, hoping, asking in addition to listening. Where we find a suitable location in need of bridge, we explain to the peasants which they can in addition to will build the bridge themselves, with their contribution of sand, stone, labour in addition to transportation.
Once you’ve built many bridges in a country, peasants come coming from different valleys in addition to neighbouring districts telling about their need, in addition to hoping you’d go with them. Or you read about locations in newspapers’ sad stories, or coming from government contacts in addition to different sources.
On the logistics side which can be on average 10 tons of steel per bridge. So you need to find, depending on each country, several hundreds or even thousands of tons of steel pipe, steel plates, wire rope, in addition to then transport, import, prefabricate in addition to distribute to far-flung locations throughout each country.
In Indonesia, for tax-free import procedures I have found the great help of Pak Imam Prasodjo, an honest in addition to respected personality of Indonesia’s society, who connected me to the Minister of Public Works in addition to different Ministers. Through another not bad friend, Pak Fazwar Bujang in addition to by today retired CEO of Krakatau Steel Company, we received the unusual help of the Indonesian Army Special Forces in addition to Indonesian Navy for the transportation of the six bridges all the way to Sulawesi in addition to to very difficult-to-reach places.
within the case of Indonesia in addition to Ecuador, the peasants are very lucky in addition to get the cement mostly donated by the local Holcim cement company. however in Myanmar in addition to the different countries the peasants buy which themselves, often so poor which four to a few families together give one bag of cement, for a bridge which can take anywhere between 200 in addition to 400 bags of cement, depending on the span.
Have you encountered problems in building bridges in Indonesia or different countries?
Lots of problems – all the time – technical, logistical, social, personal, health-wise in addition to a long list of ‘etc.’ Some problems (however also advantages) arise coming from the fact which I am just nothing – no NGO, no company, no member of any group or such. however the task can be to encounter equal amount of solutions, in addition to within reasonable time. Thanks to caring friends encountered along the way This specific becomes possible at all.
Where was the most devastated place you’ve visited in addition to helped?
In Colombia 1994, after an earthquake in addition to following landslides on the Nevado del Huila, in addition to in 1998 in Honduras after Hurricane Mitch.
What’s the general amount of time taken to complete a bridge?
Three visits for any location; two hours for survey in addition to talking with the villagers. Then, once they are ready with their excavations in addition to aggregates, we go For just two days of cementation with about 80 peasants. Finally, usually three weeks later, once the concrete has cured, we go for another one to two days for final assembly, again with the help of 80 peasants. So, basically which’s a few days of work distributed over a month. Nowadays we build about 50 bridges per year.
What do you desire to achieve in later years? Will you keep building bridges?
If I am fortunate enough to reach ‘later years’, I desire I’ll be willing enough to serve the people.
Right today we have materials already collected or underway for 30 more bridges in Myanmar, at least 15 more in Indonesia in addition to about 50 more in Ecuador. which’s about two years, in addition to a long way to go.
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Toni Ruttimann: The Bridge-Builder
Toni Ruttimann: The Bridge-Builder