Landslide Buries Workers Inside High-Speed Rail Tunnel Construction in Nakhon Ratchasima

[sandyf]

19 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

China is good for many things,

China's HSR accounts for two-thirds of the world's total high-speed railway networks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_China

[moe666]

20 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

The 3 persons reported missing are ;

 

1. Mr. Hu Siang Min, male, Chinese nationality (supervisor);

2. Mr. Dong Chin Lin, male, Chinese nationality, backhoe driver;

3. Unknown Burmese worker, truck driver.
 

Mr. Pasan Sawatburi, Senior Vice President of the construction company, said that the company has not yet received a report of the exact cause and is currently conducting an inspection of the area. The tunnel work is under Contract 3-2, Muak Lek and Lam Takhong Tunnel, a distance of 12.23 kilometers. As of July 2024, the company has completed construction at 74% of the tunnel.

 

Picture below shows the planned tunnel route.

 

Will this be known as one of the chinese Tofu tunnels

[sandyf]

3 hours ago, Edwin Cameron said:

Chinese workmanship is abyssmal. go anywhere in China and you will see not so old buildings falling apart,NO B.S. they are corrupt and cut corners or use inferior products, so I'm not surprised this is happening,belt and road...Phoooey..!

However overall, Chinese high speed rail has an exemplary safety record[135]: 70  and according to The New York Times, the Chinese high-speed rail network is "one of the world’s safest transportation systems."[136] As of at least 2024, the Wenzhou crash remains the only serious accident in the massive Chinese HSR network.[135]: 70 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_China#:~:text=However overall%2C Chinese high speed,the massive Chinese HSR network.

[Frankie baby]

They've obviously skimped on a tunnel boring machine (just mentioned by N P Knight) which is now standard for this operation in most other countries. Their very expensive & need proper trained personnel to operate but have an excellent safety record. Hence the reason there not using one. 

[Georgealbert]

13 minutes ago, Nicholas Paul KNIGHT said:

I am sure there is a reason, but WHY are they not using a tunnel boring machine . These days far simpler 

The cost of the machine makes it unsuitable for this type of project.

 

It is not clear if this tunnel is just being dug out or being blasted with explosives, which is common in both tunnel construction and underground mining access.

 

The tunnel from the pictures, seems to be using metal framing to support the walls and roof, with concrete, probably shotcrete over that.

 

What is not clear, is if the missing workers were in an area which had the walls and roof secured, or were under unsupported ground (just soil which had been dug out). Working under unsupported ground is extremely risky.

 

I would guess that this collapse was brought on by geological changes, build up of underground water, brought on by recent rains, and the tunnel planning/working was based on old survey data, without it being updated.

 

The rescue plans, seems fairly standard, first locate where the missing are expected to be, try to establish communication with them, provide them with access to supply fresh air, food and water, then workout a way to extract them safely

[webfact]

Workers found alive under collapsed tunnel at rail construction site
by Ryan Turner

 

Image courtesy of KhaoSod

Three workers have been found alive under a collapsed tunnel at the high-speed rail construction site between Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima. Rescue teams are working tirelessly to retrieve them from 6 metres beneath the debris.

The incident occurred yesterday, August 25, at the high-speed rail tunnel construction site between the Janthuek and Klong Khananchit stations in Pak Chong district, Nakhon Ratchasima. The collapse happened inside the third tunnel, which spans 1.5 kilometres, approximately 600 metres from the entrance.

 

The tunnel caved in on a vehicle and three workers around midnight.

 

Following the collapse, construction company officials have been continuously searching for the missing workers. The district chief of Pak Chong, Kanatshanom Sricharoen and local government officials, including Kris Phunkasem, head of the Nakhon Ratchasima Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, have been actively monitoring the rescue efforts.

 

The Provincial Governor, Chaiwat Chuenkosum, also visited the site with the provincial police chief, Narongrit Dansuwan, to oversee the rescue operations. A command centre has been established at the Klong Khananchit railway station to coordinate the rescue efforts.

Rescue teams have been using pulse-detection equipment to locate the missing workers, believed to be trapped under the tunnel debris for over 24 hours. Officials have been praying for the workers’ survival.

According to the authorities on-site, the tunnel excavation involved removing three soil layers before installing support beams. During the excavation, soil from the first and second layers suddenly collapsed, burying two trucks and the workers.

 

Closely monitoring

 

Kanatshanom, who is directing the rescue operations, checked on the progress within the tunnel at 11pm. He informed the media at 4am today that Chaiwat, the provincial governor, has been closely following the situation.

 

The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department provided radar scanning equipment, which arrived at midnight and was immediately put to use. The equipment detected the vital signs of the three trapped workers.

Kanatshanom confirmed that pulse-detection equipment had arrived and was being used inside the tunnel. Throughout the night, rescue teams, including those with excavators, worked to remove the soil.

 

At 4.30am today, the equipment detected the workers’ pulses approximately 6 metres beneath the debris, indicating they were still alive. Ambulances and medical teams from Pak Chong Nana Hospital are on standby at the tunnel entrance.

 

The three missing workers include a Chinese supervisor, Hu Xiangmin, an excavator operator, Dong Xinlin, and an unidentified Burmese truck driver. Rescue teams work around the clock to safely extract them from the collapsed tunnel.

Emergency personnel remain on-site to provide immediate medical assistance once the workers are rescued. The efforts are ongoing, and the situation remains critical as rescuers strive to bring the workers to safety, reported KhaoSod.

 

Source: The Thaiger 2024-08-26

 

 

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[renaissanc]

Chinese construction projects have a bad reputation. They are called "Tofu Construction". If Chinese specifications are being used, good luck to anyone using the train system.

Edited August 26 by renaissanc

[ikke1959]

I really hope that Thailand will never be allowed to built a nuclear plant... The corruption and greed will make it very dangerous as this an example already out of so many

[Missahhter]

If this is a Chinese designed and built project, then look up "Tofu construction"

There are many examples of things collapsing everyday in China.

[ChrisY1]

Not too sure having a huge excavator searching....but anyway, found safe and probably unsound...

[IamNoone88]

There has been quite a few structural and financial failures linked to China in recent years.

[Taboo2]

May I suggest they talk to the Swiss Engineers...they are experts at this type of work.

[NoDisplayName]

3 hours ago, Iron Tongue said:

Looky, looky.

 

Hey guys!

Remember that recent discussion about Chinese posting on AE, and I wrote that they always pose as white folks, and used names like "Joe in Australia" to try and blend in?

 

 

Chin Bad!®

[brianthainess]

1 hour ago, Aussie999 said:

Using your logic, most Thais, Chinese, Japanese, Indians,Burmese, etc are all atheists, well done, you have label almost half the world's population... How did we atheists survive, for so long...

God knows.................................

[brianthainess]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Officials have been praying for the workers’ survival.

Oh I bet they have, the compensation would/could be enormous. .............

[Nairbem]

20 hours ago, Artisi said:

Don't think too hard, I'll give you a few clues to start with : road systems, bridges, tunnel, high-rise buildings - that should save you at least 1 year of thinking. 

 

1 hour ago, Aussie999 said:

Using your logic, most Thais, Chinese, Japanese, Indians,Burmese, etc are all atheists, well done, you have label almost half the world's population... How did we atheists survive, for so long...

How could you forget fireworks? The rest of your list is stuff they copied,  which they are great at! 

[Sig]

It was a HUGE mistake going with China instead of Japan on their rail project. China is definitely up and coming, but why on earth go with them when the massive infrastructure that they've been building is crumbling at a rapid rate. The international media hardly lets it see the light of day and of course, it's even mostly censored within China. But they are constantly having buildings crumble, bridges collapse, and roads deteriorate rapidly. I think they will very soon be doing much higher quality work, but I wouldn't trust them with this project AT ALL until they have a better track record of projects that last. They've built a lot of really nice stuff, but their track record is still poor. Whereas the Japanese have decades of proven incredible excellence with their construction and in particular their high speed rail. I wasn't surprised when Thailand went with China. It was obvious for many reasons - one of which is, China is the very place brown envelopes are manufactured to begin with! lol It was a stupendously foolish decision to go with China over Japan.

[Georgealbert]

Latest information reports that despite signs of life being detected around 04:30 on August 26, further attempts to locate the workers proved unsuccessful. Efforts now include the deployment of K9 search dogs, along with scanning equipment, to aid in the search.
 

Earlier video from today of the USAR team at the incident site.

 

[Gandtee]

2 hours ago, Taboo2 said:

May I suggest they talk to the Swiss Engineers...they are experts at this type of work.

Too expensive. Won't cut corners and can't be bought.

[Aussie999]

2 hours ago, brianthainess said:

God knows.................................

I'm not getting into a religious discussion... us Athiests know better... bye

[Burma Bill]

On 8/25/2024 at 12:19 PM, Georgealbert said:

because when the backhoe was Being used to remove the soil it just continued to collapse

 

No Greathead Shield being used to prevent such collapses??

 

 

 

[bamnutsak]

In 2003, China’s Minister of Railways, Liu Zhijun, took charge of plans to build seventy-five hundred miles of high-speed railway—more than could be found in the rest of the world combined.

 

To complete the first route by 2008, Minister Liu, whose ambition and flamboyance earned him the nickname Great Leap Liu, drove his crews and engineers to work in shifts around the clock, laying track, revising blueprints, and boring tunnels. “To achieve a great leap,” he liked to say, “a generation must be sacrificed.” (Some colleagues called him Lunatic Liu.) 

 

 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2012/10/22/boss-rail

 

 

In April 2013, Liu was arrested on corruption charges for taking over 64 million yuan in bribes and abusing his power as Minister of Railways. He was convicted and received a death sentence with reprieve in July 2013. On 14 December 2015, Liu Zhijun's sentence was statutorily commuted to life imprisonment.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Zhijun

 

 

[AustinRacing]

Chinese are very keen at doing things. Doing it properly, though, is of lesser importance to them. Quick completion=money. What happens if we f’up?, we’ll cross that bridge (or tunnel) when it happens. 

[Photoguy21]

4 hours ago, sandyf said:

China's HSR accounts for two-thirds of the world's total high-speed railway networks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_China

And your point is what exactly? That is no reflection of safety standards which the Chinese ignore.

[daveAustin]

7 hours ago, kwaussie said:

China has a space station and builds lots of warfare, dont forget the submarine! 

All of which is junk and/or data copied/stolen to the nth degree. They get on with things, but always massive corner cutting and safety issues. They could not care less.

[daveAustin]

1 hour ago, Sig said:

It was a HUGE mistake going with China instead of Japan on their rail project. China is definitely up and coming, but why on earth go with them when the massive infrastructure that they've been building is crumbling at a rapid rate. The international media hardly lets it see the light of day and of course, it's even mostly censored within China. But they are constantly having buildings crumble, bridges collapse, and roads deteriorate rapidly. I think they will very soon be doing much higher quality work, but I wouldn't trust them with this project AT ALL until they have a better track record of projects that last. They've built a lot of really nice stuff, but their track record is still poor. Whereas the Japanese have decades of proven incredible excellence with their construction and in particular their high speed rail. I wasn't surprised when Thailand went with China. It was obvious for many reasons - one of which is, China is the very place brown envelopes are manufactured to begin with! lol It was a stupendously foolish decision to go with China over Japan.

Because of graft, overall cost, big brown envelopes and political pressure.

[NoDisplayName]

2 hours ago, Sig said:

It was a HUGE mistake going with China instead of Japan on their rail project.

 

"Be happy in your work."

[NoDisplayName]

56 minutes ago, bamnutsak said:

In April 2013, Liu was arrested on corruption charges for taking over 64 million yuan in bribes and abusing his power as Minister of Railways. He was convicted and received a death sentence

 

So you're saying corruption is good and should not be punished?

[FritsSikkink]

9 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

If it carries passengers it has the capacity to ruin entire cities. 

Can you clarify this please.

[FritsSikkink]

8 hours ago, Expat Tom said:

 Thailand need to build a wall on its Northern boarder. 

 

Ridiculous suggestion.

How is that wall against the Mexican's working?