Authorities Declare 66 Buildings Unsafe Following Earthquake Damage

[Georgealbert]

 

Picture courtesy of Khaosod.

 

The Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning has ordered the suspension of use for 66 buildings across Thailand after structural damage was deemed severe in the aftermath of the recent earthquake, which struck over two weeks ago. Officials confirmed that while the vast majority of inspected buildings remain safe, dozens were found to be in critical condition.

 

In a comprehensive damage assessment operation carried out between 28 March and 11 April, a total of 8,884 buildings were inspected nationwide. Of these, 8,369 were declared structurally sound and safe to use. A further 449 buildings were found to have sustained moderate damage but remained usable. However, 66 buildings were labelled as red-level risk, meaning their structural integrity had been severely compromised, and their use was immediately prohibited.

 

The inspections were conducted by a coordinated team from the Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning, the Council of Engineers, the Engineering Institute of Thailand, and certified private sector engineers. Public buildings, including schools, hospitals, and government offices, were prioritised under the first phase of inspection.

 

In Bangkok alone, 649 public buildings were examined:

 

• 589 buildings received a green classification (safe for use)

• 58 buildings were given a yellow status (moderate damage, still usable)

• 2 buildings were classified red and ordered closed

 

Private sector structures, such as high-rise buildings, condominiums, hotels, and large commercial venues — formed the second inspection group. These buildings are required by law to undergo annual structural checks. Following an order issued on 31 March by Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) notified approximately 11,000 property owners to conduct urgent assessments. As of 11 April, 3,518 buildings had submitted inspection reports.

 

Residential properties, shopfront buildings, and townhouses across Bangkok made up the third group. The BMA received 19,270 inspection requests from the public via the Traffy Fondue system. Authorities reported that 18,367 cases had been addressed and closed.

 

In provinces outside the capital, local offices of the Department of Public Works, in collaboration with municipal engineers and volunteers, inspected 8,235 buildings:

 

• 7,780 were classified green

• 391 were yellow

• 64 were marked red and immediately closed

 

The authorities have urged all property owners and tenants to take building safety seriously. Building owners failing to comply with mandatory inspections may face legal consequences under Thailand’s Building Control Act.

 

-- 2025-04-13

 

[watchcat]

17 minutes ago, Georgealbert said:

The authorities have urged all property owners and tenants to take building safety seriously. Building owners failing to comply with mandatory inspections may face legal consequences under Thailand’s Building Control Act.

 

Sounds good to me.

[Andytheburiramman]

So business as usual 👍

Wonder how many buildings will actually be knocked down or repaired to a safe standard 🤔

I feel sorry for those people who bought condos in a highrise building, who will possibly face scary bills to rectify defective construction (if any work get actually done).

[impulse]

I'd appreciate anyone posting up a list of the buildings by category.  I suspect it's available somewhere in Thai, but I have no clue where to look. 

 

I'm most curious about the hotel I'm booked into next week, but also think it would be good information for anyone looking for a rental, and even more useful for anyone who wants to buy. And to anyone who has property but lives overseas.

 

[connda]

😕 "And the list of those building is where?"
"Mai bpen rai.  Don't worry about it!"

[connda]

I've does AI searches for any disclosures of the damaged building in both Thai and English and to date as far as I can tell, the Thai government doesn't feel it is necessary to inform its citizens and public by providing a publish list of the damage buildings.

รายชื่ออาคารที่ปิดทั้งหมดยังไม่เปิดเผยต่อสาธารณะทางออนไลน์
A complete list of closed buildings has not yet been made public online.

Source Grok 3 "DeepSearch"

[CallumWK]

Am I correct in assuming that the checked buildings only concern government owned buildings?

 

[impulse]

52 minutes ago, connda said:

I've does AI searches for any disclosures of the damaged building in both Thai and English and to date as far as I can tell, the Thai government doesn't feel it is necessary to inform its citizens and public by providing a publish list of the damage buildings.

รายชื่ออาคารที่ปิดทั้งหมดยังไม่เปิดเผยต่อสาธารณะทางออนไลน์
A complete list of closed buildings has not yet been made public online.

Source Grok 3 "DeepSearch"

 

I'm surprised, because that just opens the door for social media shenanigans that would be even more dangerous than actually publishing the list.

[Moonlover]

51 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

Am I correct in assuming that the checked buildings only concern government owned buildings?

 

No. Didn't you read the article?

[CallumWK]

3 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

No. Didn't you read the article?

 

Yes I did, and it says that the private sector has to do their own inspections, and so far less than 30% of the 11000 have reported back

[Georgealbert]

2 hours ago, connda said:

I've does AI searches for any disclosures of the damaged building in both Thai and English and to date as far as I can tell, the Thai government doesn't feel it is necessary to inform its citizens and public by providing a publish list of the damage buildings.

รายชื่ออาคารที่ปิดทั้งหมดยังไม่เปิดเผยต่อสาธารณะทางออนไลน์
A complete list of closed buildings has not yet been made public online.

Source Grok 3 "DeepSearch"

The only list I can find, is this Thai language pdf, reached via the QR code in the Department of Public Works, poster below.

 

 

[Captain Flack]

A troll post has been removed. @redwood1

[quake]

Here we go.

The famous Thai smoke & Mirrors,  starting to get up to speed.