Earthquake Rocks Bangkok: Building Collapses with 40 people inside

[Ralf001]

2 hours ago, jojothai said:

 latest regulations, introduced in 2021, mandate seismic-resistant designs for buildings in Bangkok.  

 it was nearly complete.
 

 

The construction of the State Audit Office building started in 2020.

At the time of collapse, it was 30% complete.

[edwinchester]

Looking at some of the pics of damaged hi rise/condos on FB I think we'll be waiting for the market to stabilize before looking for anything to buy.

[richard_smith237]

19 minutes ago, John Drake said:

 

Tofu building techniques have now come to Thailand.

 

 

Yes, because all buildings in Bangkok collapsed, right...  just like Tofu !!!...

 

Grade A1 for dim comment of the day !!!!

[John Drake]

Just now, richard_smith237 said:

 

Yes, because all buildings in Bangkok collapsed, right...  just like Tofu !!!...

 

Grade A1 for dim comment of the day !!!!

 

Trying to sell your condos, eh?

[John Drake]

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Yes, because all buildings in Bangkok collapsed, right...  just like Tofu !!!...

 

Grade A1 for dim comment of the day !!!!

 

Oh, and Mr. Genius, how many high rises in Bangkok have been built by the Chinese? Maybe the other buildings are still standing because the Chinese didn't have a hand in their construction.

[richard_smith237]

3 minutes ago, John Drake said:

Trying to sell your condos, eh?

 

 

Trying to double down with dim comments I see... 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

5 minutes ago, John Drake said:

Oh, and Mr. Genius, how many high rises in Bangkok have been built by the Chinese? Maybe the other buildings are still standing because the Chinese didn't have a hand in their construction.

 

Adding racism and bigotry to the silliness....     you're outdoing yourself !

 

The Myanmar earthquake (magnitude 7.7 Mw) was felt in several parts of China, particularly in Yunnan Province and neighbouring areas.

 

Inferred localised intensities evaluated by the reported perceived shaking and damage reported were as follows:

 

Ruili and Mangshi (near the border):

Local intensity: Approximately 5.0 to 5.5 ML equivalent

This intensity correlates with "moderate" to "rather strong" shaking.

 

Kunming (capital of Yunnan, ~500 km from the epicentre):

Local intensity: Around 4.0 to 4.5 ML equivalent.This would be "light" shaking, where windows rattle and people indoors clearly feel the tremor.

 

Distant areas (Sichuan, Guizhou, Guangxi):

Local intensity: Roughly 3.0 to 3.5 ML equivalent. This would be "weak" shaking, noticeable mainly to people indoors, without damage.

 

 

There were no major building collapses, some small homes and mall garages reported collapsed, some reports of major buildings suffering structural damage.

 

 

All those surviving high rises were clearly built by non-Chinese, eh ???

 

[Rampant Rabbit]

3 hours ago, Rolo89 said:

6 high rises in BKK already declared uninhabitable. Some of them are brand new and were supposed to withstand this.

 

The condo market in BKK is going to have dire issues.

 

https://www.bernama.com/en/news.php/?id=2407409

but NO mention of which in the article............cant be having their good names  sullied etc I know of at least one which has major  damage Rythm at On Nut Sukhumvit 50 I think

[Ralf001]

12 minutes ago, John Drake said:

 

Oh, and Mr. Genius, how many high rises in Bangkok have been built by the Chinese? Maybe the other buildings are still standing because the Chinese didn't have a hand in their construction.

 

The "chinese companies" would be 51% Thai owned and would have built to Thai standards.

[josephbloggs]

51 minutes ago, Aussie999 said:

I think you need to be reminded the epi-centre was 1400 kms away, and look at the damage in Bangkok, if the epi-centre was closer, the damage would certainly been much higher. usually 1400kms would be hardly noticeable.

Are you in Bangkok?

I have driven around today, I went past Park Origin which has obviously got broken walkways, but other than that I couldn't see any damage anywhere to anything. If you think damage is widespread you are mistaken.

[John Drake]

32 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Adding racism and bigotry to the silliness....     you're outdoing yourself !

 

The Myanmar earthquake (magnitude 7.7 Mw) was felt in several parts of China, particularly in Yunnan Province and neighbouring areas.

 

Inferred localised intensities evaluated by the reported perceived shaking and damage reported were as follows:

 

Ruili and Mangshi (near the border):

Local intensity: Approximately 5.0 to 5.5 ML equivalent

This intensity correlates with "moderate" to "rather strong" shaking.

 

Kunming (capital of Yunnan, ~500 km from the epicentre):

Local intensity: Around 4.0 to 4.5 ML equivalent.This would be "light" shaking, where windows rattle and people indoors clearly feel the tremor.

 

Distant areas (Sichuan, Guizhou, Guangxi):

Local intensity: Roughly 3.0 to 3.5 ML equivalent. This would be "weak" shaking, noticeable mainly to people indoors, without damage.

 

 

There were no major building collapses, some small homes and mall garages reported collapsed, some reports of major buildings suffering structural damage.

 

 

All those surviving high rises were clearly built by non-Chinese, eh ???

 

 

I realize you haven't got much to do with your life other than hang out on this forum and try to pick fights, but be aware at least that the term, "tofu" applied to Chinese construction, comes from the Chinese themselves. In fact, it was a former Chinese premier who coined it.

[CK1980]

I was on 27th floor in a condo in BKK, swaying from side to side. Horrible situation. 

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, edwinchester said:

Looking at some of the pics of damaged hi rise/condos on FB I think we'll be waiting for the market to stabilize before looking for anything to buy.

Maybe better to buy before they paint over the cracks, at a big discount obviously 

[CK1980]

40 minutes ago, josephbloggs said:

Are you in Bangkok?

I have driven around today, I went past Park Origin which has obviously got broken walkways, but other than that I couldn't see any damage anywhere to anything. If you think damage is widespread you are mistaken.

You are mistaken. There is substantial infrastructure damage across the city. MRT, BTS and many many condos with huge cracks and possibly to be condemned. This is very serious. 

[CK1980]

21 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

If an earthquake of 1000km away can bring this kind of damage, you can question the quality of the building constructions.. Suppose it happened in Chiang Mai or Kanchanaburi.. How much damage could have been done. I hope that people will get safe rescued under the debris with the most urgency, even they are Myanmar.. Nature has powers that nobody can control, just a proof of it

Bit of a contradiction. You say that we can 'question the quality of the building constructions', but also, 'Nature has powers that nobody can control'. Make up your mind.

 

I think your latter point is more valid. Nature has the ability to destroy any man made construction, regardless of the 'quality'.

[CK1980]

21 hours ago, MikeandDow said:

Just heard in bangkok people cannot get home  no buses no trains no mrt taxi fares have tripled  this is the thai goverment emergency resopnse  strand people !!!

Why are you so salty?

 

Miserable posts from you throughout.

 

I live here and took multiple taxis last night in the aftermath, at the usual price. And what has that got to do with the Thai government emergency response anyway? 

 

The government hasn't stranded anyone, it was an earthquake. You want the government to magically fix the cracked MRT and make government busses and taxis appear? Ridiculous comment. And by the way I am in no way a fan of the government here, but what do you expect them to do?  

 

[Merrill]

23 hours ago, champers said:

BBC reporting 70 are trapped in the collapsed building.

BBC reports what they are paid to report they seldom have a clue nowdays

[SingAPorn]

Once the lives are saved and things settle, will there be an investigation on how construction contractors cheat with lower grade materials or unqualified staff or non respect of basic curing protocols when applying cement ?  Or will it once again all be hushed up with bribes or corruption ? Just asking, not insinuating anything.

 

Be it a customer who is a home owner or a larger scale developper. Almost every foreigner who bought property in Thailand,.  can relate some horror stories when dealing with construction contractors be it for a villa in Hua Hin, a condo in Bangkok or a townhouse elsewhere.

 

Lower grade materials and cement used. They just openly lie if the customer challenges anything and when they feel they are caught, they will suddenly "forget" how to speak in english. This happens on a daily basis with contractors in Hua Hin and all over the nation.

[MikeandDow]

17 minutes ago, CK1980 said:

Why are you so salty?

 

Miserable posts from you throughout.

 

I live here and took multiple taxis last night in the aftermath, at the usual price. And what has that got to do with the Thai government emergency response anyway? 

 

The government hasn't stranded anyone, it was an earthquake. You want the government to magically fix the cracked MRT and make government busses and taxis appear? Ridiculous comment. And by the way I am in no way a fan of the government here, but what do you expect them to do?  

 

Who said a cracked MRT I call that BS, Bangkok  was declared disaster zone  the goverment STOPPED the busses MRT and trains how are people going to get home if that is not stranding people what is  Over priced Taxi  this was all reported in the press   people had to sleep in the parks  your post is just total BS

[Jiggo]

Terrible for the crane driver, first to go, up there in that box...

[MikeandDow]

4 minutes ago, Jiggo said:

Terrible for the crane driver, first to go, up there in that box...

Oh !!  and you have news that the crane was maned at the time

[Middle Aged Grouch]

42 minutes ago, SingAPorn said:

Once the lives are saved and things settle, will there be an investigation on how construction contractors cheat with lower grade materials or unqualified staff or non respect of basic curing protocols when applying cement ?  Or will it once again all be hushed up with bribes or corruption ? Just asking, not insinuating anything.

 

Be it a customer who is a home owner or a larger scale developper. Almost every foreigner who bought property in Thailand,.  can relate some horror stories when dealing with construction contractors be it for a villa in Hua Hin, a condo in Bangkok or a townhouse elsewhere.

 

Lower grade materials and cement used. They just openly lie if the customer challenges anything and when they feel they are caught, they will suddenly "forget" how to speak in english. This happens on a daily basis with contractors in Hua Hin and all over the nation.

I cannot but agree. Head quite a few complaints  how falang villa owners are badly served in Hua Hin. Some acquaintances in Hua Hin are now getting their workers from Pattaya or Bangkok areas for villa maintenance/upgrading. They just were fed up in being overcharged and bad work with most of the Hua Hin construction contractor characters.

[jojothai]

2 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

 

The construction of the State Audit Office building started in 2020.

At the time of collapse, it was 30% complete.

Very Good point.
Construction contracts normally include compliance with regulations such as this at the time of Contract.
So, compliance with the new regulations would likely not apply.
The design would have already been done and approved by building authorities prior to construction starting. 

[jojothai]

2 minutes ago, Middle Aged Grouch said:

I cannot but agree. Head quite a few complaints  how falang villa owners are badly served in Hua Hin. Some acquaintances in Hua Hin are now getting their workers from Pattaya or Bangkok areas for villa maintenance/upgrading. They just were fed up in being overcharged and bad work with most of the Hua Hin construction contractor characters.

Its very hard to find good workers in Hua Hin. A friend has a house buiulding and renovation company and curses the problems he gets with even the simplest of jobs.
I find it hard to get somebody to do some small improvements, and even then end up doing most of it myself because they are usually bad at doing anything properly.

FYI, there are faults in the supply of major building materials.
I built my own house 15 years ago, i am a chartered engineer and checked things.

Reinforcing bars have a system where you can buy below standard sizes that are factory rejects. 
Roof steel channels have wrong grading stamped on them, the standard size is stamped on the pieces but there are three grades of the standard code sizes sold, I found that the smallest is half the section area of what the code grade should be. Its not cheating, because at the main suppliers you pay for the weight. Unscruplous builders buy them and cheat becxause they appear to be the size stated on the design.  
No wonder you see roofs sagging.
We bought all the concrete materials from consistent sources. I had some mixed initially and made cylinders that I got tested to confirm strength was ok.
The local builders thought I was looney. Never seen a slump cone before or made test cylinders.

[Rolo89]

2 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Are you in Bangkok?

I have driven around today, I went past Park Origin which has obviously got broken walkways, but other than that I couldn't see any damage anywhere to anything. If you think damage is widespread you are mistaken.

If only it was that easy to asses the structural inegrity of buildings by driving by!

 

If 6 are already declared uninhabital without a detailed assesment it's going to be a lot worse after there's the time to assess them all properly. Which might take weeks with how many need experts looking at them!

[MikeandDow]

6 minutes ago, jojothai said:

Its very hard to find good workers in Hua Hin. A friend has a house buiulding and renovation company and curses the problems he gets with even the simplest of jobs.
I find it hard to get somebody to do some small improvements, and even then end up doing most of it myself because they are usually bad at doing anything properly.

FYI, there are faults in the supply of major building materials.
I built my own house 15 years ago, i am a chartered engineer and checked things.

Reinforcing bars have a system where you can buy below standard sizes that are factory rejects. 
Roof steel channels have wrong grading stamped on them, the standard size is stamped on the pieces but there are three grades of the standard code sizes sold, I found that the smallest is half the section area of what the code grade should be. Its not cheating, because at the main suppliers you pay for the weight. Unscruplous builders buy them and cheat becxause they appear to be the size stated on the design.  
No wonder you see roofs sagging.
We bought all the concrete materials from consistent sources. I had some mixed initially and made cylinders that I got tested to confirm strength was ok.
The local builders thought I was looney. Never seen a slump cone before or made test cylinders.

And you are spot on !!  total courption in the thai constuction Industry the almight baht in someones pocket    might borrow a clegg hammer from work like to see what the mpa is of some of the concrete around here is

[MikeandDow]

Pasakorn Boonyalak, director-general of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation and his cohorts should be held to the highest account for this incident and replaced with someone who is actually competent enough to know that mitigation means putting measures in place beforehand to ensure the absolute minium impact on human life and infrastructure. I cannot for the life of me remember any time this department has prevented or mitigated any disaster. They only appear to surface after the fact when it's too late. Maybe the department should be renamed to the reactive department of incompetence and complacency.

 

[Mr Meeseeks]

1 hour ago, MikeandDow said:

Oh !!  and you have news that the crane was maned at the time

 

One of the videos shows him being launched from the cab as it collapsed.

[johng]

Just now, Mr Meeseeks said:

 

One of the videos shows him being launched from the cab as it collapsed.

 

Yes I saw the video  that seemed to show  crane operator flying through the air

he also seemed to have some sort of parachute  perhaps he survived ?

[Nick Carter icp]

The crane moving around forcefully , the crane was moving with some power .

   The crane seems to have weakened the whole precast side of the building and it caused the bottom pillars to collapse and then the whole building came down