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Straits Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Bangkok building collapsed due to construction and design flaws, probe shows
The 30-storey building was the only structure in Bangkok to collapse following the 7.7-magnitude earthquake. PHOTO: AFP BANGKOK – Thai investigators have concluded that flaws in the design and construction methods caused the collapse of a partially built Bangkok building that killed at least 89 people during a massive earthquake on March 28. An investigation by a government agency and three universities found that the elevator and stairwell walls – key structures meant to absorb shear force – were improperly designed and built, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said during a news briefing on June 30. She added that the quality of steel, concrete and other materials met required standards, disputing earlier reports that substandard steel bars were used. 'The failure stemmed from deficiencies in both the design and construction methods,' she said in a post on X. 'In particular, the construction techniques, such as the construction of the elevator shaft wall, did not comply with engineering principles and standards,' she added. The 30-storey building, intended to house Thailand's State Audit Office, was the only structure in the capital to collapse following the 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck central Myanmar. Police have filed criminal charges against a prominent Thai construction tycoon and about a dozen others for negligence resulting in the collapse and loss of life. The building was being constructed by ITD-Crec, a joint venture between Italian-Thai Development and China Railway Number 10 Thailand. The venture was awarded the 2.14 billion baht (S$84 million) contract through competitive bidding in 2020, with construction starting later that year, according to the State Audit Office. Mr Premchai Karnasuta, president of Italian-Thai Development, the project's main contractor, was among more than a dozen executives, engineers, designers and supervisors who reported to police after a court issued arrest warrants. A fact-finding committee will submit its report to the Department of Special Investigation and Royal Thai Police for further action, Ms Paetongtarn wrote on X. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Nikkei Asia
16-05-2025
- Nikkei Asia
Bangkok construction tycoon charged over earthquake collapse
BANGKOK (AP) -- A construction magnate, builders, designers and engineers surrendered to police Friday on criminal negligence charges for the deadly collapse of a Bangkok high-rise in the March 28 earthquake that hit Myanmar. Premchai Karnasuta, the president of Italian-Thai Development (ITD), the main Thai contractor for the building project, as well as designers and engineers were among 17 charged with the felony of professional negligence causing death, Bangkok deputy police chief Noppasin Poonsawat said.
RTHK
16-05-2025
- RTHK
Tycoon turns himself in over Bangkok quake collapse
Tycoon turns himself in over Bangkok quake collapse Premchai Karnasuta leaves a court in Samut Songkhram province, Thailand, in 2019 over another case. File photo: AFP A construction magnate and several builders, designers and engineers surrendered to police on Friday on criminal negligence charges for the deadly collapse of a Bangkok high-rise in the March 28 earthquake that hit Myanmar. Premchai Karnasuta, the president of Italian-Thai Development, the main Thai contractor for the building project, as well as designers and engineers were among 17 charged with the felony of professional negligence causing death, Bangkok deputy police chief Noppasin Poonsawat said. Noppasin said those who met police on Friday formally denied the charges. Several have previously issued public denials in response to allegations in the media. Ninety-two people were confirmed dead in the rubble of the building that had been under construction and a small number of other people remain unaccounted for. The building, which was to become a new State Audit Office, was the only one in Thailand to collapse in the earthquake that was centered in Myanmar. The search for victims at the site has been halted, though efforts to identify remains through DNA will continue. Noppasin said evidence and testimony from experts suggested the building plan did not meet standards and codes. The Bangkok Post newspaper said police had also determined the project showed "structural flaws in the core lift shaft and substandard concrete and steel.' Thai media have reported allegations of wrongdoing in the project almost every day since the building's collapse, many of them involving irregular documentation for the project. A Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for the 17 on Thursday. Noppasin said 15 turned themselves in at a police station in the morning and the remaining two were expected to do so later on Friday. The epicenter of the quake was in central Myanmar, where it killed more than 3,700 people and caused major damage in Mandalay, the country's second biggest city, and the capital Naypyitaw. Premchai's case is his second major tangle with the law. In 2019, he was convicted of wildlife poaching and served about three years in prison. He was found guilty of killing protected animals and illegal possession of weapons after park rangers found a hunting party at a wildlife sanctuary in 2018 with carcasses of a rare black panther, a kalij pheasant and a barking deer. The panther had been butchered and its meat cooked for soup. (AP)
