Scaffolding In Front Of Central World Bangkok Collapses, Killing 2

[Brewsta]

damned sad.....totally predictable........madness.

R.I.P for sure

R.I.P.

[random]

"Foreman", not "foreperson". It's hardly likely to be a woman is it. Eeuurgh. Horrible PC words have crept into Thailand.

The Scaffold was made of steal and had pretty much circled the entire Zen side of the building. Corrosion maybe, or someone didn't tighten a few of the brackets holding it together. Or, the sight foreperson didn't do regular inspections of the support structure like most do in other countries.

you would be surprised at the amount of women on building sites here, even in senior positions.

[ukfool]

same week took my sons bicycle to a reputable (god only knows how) bicycle repair shop for two new tyres to be fitted. It was returned with painted white 'Direction of travel' markings facing backwards and a nut missing.

I wonder how many new tires that shop has put on bikes, and still can't get it right? Seriously, how do you screw up putting on bicycle tires? I was completely taking apart bikes and putting them back together properly in the 4th grade.

The incompetence in this country is overwhelming sometimes.

'Sometimes' ? Lol

[whybother]

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

The government probably have the right organisations in place, but the problem is people in these organisations take bribes to look the other way.

If there is such an organisation that should be checking the construction sites, then they should be held partly responsible, along with the construction company that should make sure all is safe regardless of who is checking on their work.

[random]

If the red shirts hadn't burned it down - they wouldn't have scaffolding around it to repair it. Pretty obvious I would have thought?

I Certainly hope the dodgy construction company and the RED Shirt criminals can be made accountable for these unfortunate alas additional victims.

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

and if the building was never constructed the red shirts could not have burned it down, etc etc etc

[Brewsta]

damned sad.....totally predictable........madness.

R.I.P for sure......and no doubt 'back page news' way too soon - lesson learned? Sadly, unlikely.

R.I.P.

[ukfool]

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

The government probably have the right organisations in place, but the problem is people in these organisations take bribes to look the other way.

If there is such an organisation that should be checking the construction sites, then they should be held partly responsible, along with the construction company that should make sure all is safe regardless of who is checking on their work.

Along with 'the government' obviously, doing nothing about the corruption and bribes that cause this type of accident, and therefore partly responsible surely ?

[supaprik]

cause and effect, no red shirt fire no scaffold etc etc etc but the bottom line is if the scaffold fell down then it is simply the people that erected it and the insufficient training they were given, we see this type of thing all day every day and no thai seems to give a HOOT, sure I know at least 2 families tonight that wont be smiling in the LOS

[ukfool]

cause and effect, no red shirt fire no scaffold etc etc etc but the bottom line is if the scaffold fell down then it is simply the people that erected it and the insufficient training they were given, we see this type of thing all day every day and no thai seems to give a HOOT, sure I know at least 2 families tonight that wont be smiling in the LOS

No underhanded, undemocratically elected leader, no red shirt protest, no fire, no accident.

[whybother]

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

The government probably have the right organisations in place, but the problem is people in these organisations take bribes to look the other way.

If there is such an organisation that should be checking the construction sites, then they should be held partly responsible, along with the construction company that should make sure all is safe regardless of who is checking on their work.

Along with 'the government' obviously, doing nothing about the corruption and bribes that cause this type of accident, and therefore partly responsible surely ?

Yep. Abhisit should have been able to change a hundred years of ingrained corruption in 2 years. Corruption is all the fault of the government, particularly Abhisit.

[MikeyIdea]

Can't see from the office but I'll go down and have a look - lunch time anyway

[ukfool]

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

The government probably have the right organisations in place, but the problem is people in these organisations take bribes to look the other way.

If there is such an organisation that should be checking the construction sites, then they should be held partly responsible, along with the construction company that should make sure all is safe regardless of who is checking on their work.

Along with 'the government' obviously, doing nothing about the corruption and bribes that cause this type of accident, and therefore partly responsible surely ?

Yep. Abhisit should have been able to change a hundred years of ingrained corruption in 2 years. Corruption is all the fault of the government, particularly Abhisit.

I doubt if he could or would after his party being guilty 'allegedly' of the exact same thing.

[Asa]

Many Thai labour protection laws and regulation are in place. Enforcing them is the problem, together with construction negligence, hence death to the workers. Cause is likely loose bolts and no life line to protect them from falling.

[whybother]

cause and effect, no red shirt fire no scaffold etc etc etc but the bottom line is if the scaffold fell down then it is simply the people that erected it and the insufficient training they were given, we see this type of thing all day every day and no thai seems to give a HOOT, sure I know at least 2 families tonight that wont be smiling in the LOS

No underhanded, undemocratically elected leader, no red shirt protest, no fire, no accident.

How far do you want to go back?

This is (probably) the fault of poor construction methods, short cuts and probably bribes.

[bdenner]

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

Do a bit of research and tell me!

[matchless51]

Every site i walk past has the big 'SAFETY FIRST' sign, it's my nature to stop and have a look, sometimes i'm reminded what my bosses used to have me do, i would be very supprised if that scaff had been signed off properly, i doubt whether there is a budget for training here, 21st century practices with a 19th century attitude, and people knock the unions. RIP boys.

[OzMick]

If the red shirts hadn't burned it down - they wouldn't have scaffolding around it to repair it. Pretty obvious I would have thought?

I Certainly hope the dodgy construction company and the RED Shirt criminals can be made accountable for these unfortunate alas additional victims.

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

and if the building was never constructed the red shirts could not have burned it down, etc etc etc

Constructing the building was not a criminal act, burning it was...........................but the argument attaching blame is still illogical.

[ukfool]

cause and effect, no red shirt fire no scaffold etc etc etc but the bottom line is if the scaffold fell down then it is simply the people that erected it and the insufficient training they were given, we see this type of thing all day every day and no thai seems to give a HOOT, sure I know at least 2 families tonight that wont be smiling in the LOS

No underhanded, undemocratically elected leader, no red shirt protest, no fire, no accident.

How far do you want to go back?

This is (probably) the fault of poor construction methods, short cuts and probably bribes.

At last, the truth without the finger pointing, This is (probably) the fault of poor construction methods, short cuts and probably bribes.

[redbicycle]

I wonder how it collapsed, poor construction of the scaffold or corrosion, my money would be on the first one. I would not go on a building site in this country for love nor money.

No tie back in place .............

[webfact]

Two dead in scaffold collapse at CentralWorld reconstruction site

BANGKOK, Oct 29 -- Scaffolding six-stories high collapsed at the reconstruction site of the Zen megastore, at the southeast corner of the CentralWorld shopping complex in Ratchaprasong Friday morning, leaving at least two workers dead and five injured.

The scaffold collapsed at about 10am while an unknown number of workers of the Ch-Ayothaya construction and demolition company were working at various levels on the framework.

Two bodies were found dead under the debris--one was still under concrete rubble, while five injured workers were sent to the nearby Police General Hospital.

Rescue workers and police were searching for more survivors believed to be under the debris.

Two gas cylinders used for welding leaked after being hit by the collapsing scaffolding, forcing evacuation.

Thailand's CentralWorld shopping complex --the country's largest and the second largest in Southeast Asia-- reopened on Sept 28 for shoppers, some four months after it went up in flames on the last day of the April-May protests at Ratchaprasong.

Zen Department Store, located on one wing of CentralWorld, which collapsed after eight hours ablaze, is under reconstruction and due to open in August next year.

CentralWorld was set afire by disgruntled anti-government 'Red Shirt' United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) protesters after their leaders surrendered to police on May 19 after a half-day of violence and the military closing in on the Ratchaprasong intersection where the demonstrators had encamped since early April. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2010-10-29

[julemanden]

I Certainly hope the dodgy construction company and the RED Shirt criminals can be made accountable for these unfortunate alas additional victims.

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

Some are red some are white.... <deleted>.... We do them all ... And then we crash Hik

[thurien]

I Certainly hope the dodgy construction company and the RED Shirt criminals can be made accountable for these unfortunate alas additional victims.

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

Even though they burnt the place down, they can't be held responsible for shoddy construction methods.

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

the Red arsonists burnt down Zen / Central, repair to it as a direct response to their deeds. Reds to accept indirect responsibility for further cruel deaths.

Edited October 29, 2010 by thurien

[Narog]

Whatever the physical reason for the collapse, the main culprit is the lack of safety awareness in Thailand. No matter what equipment or procedures are available, there is unfortunately no real safety mindset here. This will change with time, but sadly, will take long time.

My condolences go out to the victims.

[random]

the Red arsonists burnt down Zen / Central, repair to it as a direct response to their deeds. Reds to accept indirect responsibility for further cruel deaths.

pathetic,

[webfact]

ACCIDENT

Two workers trapped under debris retrieved

By The Nation

Rescue workers found and rescue two workers trapped under debris after a scaffold at CentralWorld Shopping Complex on Rajdamri Road collapsed Friday morning.

The finding put the number of the injured workers to six. Two others workers were killed at the scene when a scaffold collapsed at the CentralWorld complex at about 10.30am.

The injured workers were earlier rushed to nearby Police Hospital.

The search for more workers possibly trapped under the debris had started when calls for help were heard under the debris.

Jumpol Sampaopon, dirctor of civil works office, Bangkok Metropolitant Administration said in a television interview that the rescue workers retrieved two more workers from the debris.

Jumpol said that the site of accident in Zen department part is already sealed off to facilitate the rescue works.

Earlier rescue workers pulled out two bodies, both men from the collapsed scaffold of Central World, police said.

The workers were repairing the CentralWorld burnt down by red shirts protesters when their protests at Rajprasong ended in May.

Rescue workers already pulled out two bodies from the collapsed scaffold of Central World, police said.

-- The Nation 2010-10-29

[H2oDunc]

As an ex scaff I have never seen a scaffold in Thailand that I would put my name to. The best scaffolders in the world are the Brits. In the UK you need to be trained to a high standard before you can erect a scaffold. An advanced scaffolder can erect a scaffold to any height. it is only when you start to sheet it in that it needs to be designed by an engineer. Scaffolds tend to collapse as a result of the load bearing design of the scaffold being exceeded. The load bearing of the scaffold is the distance between the upright standards and check fittings etc. Scaffolds tend to topple due to the lack of anchors attaching the scaffold to the building. A picture of the scaffold would also tell a lot.

In the UK the person who built and signed off the scaffold is legally responsible for it. it would also have a tag telling people the maximum loading and any other restrictions and inspected regularly and signed off.

Will anybody here be held responsible for the collapse ? I doubt it

RIP the guys who died

[yellow1red1]

What did the red shirts have to do with it?

Even though they burnt the place down, they can't be held responsible for shoddy construction methods.

Rather than blame red shirts, why not blame the government ? They are responsible for health and safety organisations aren't they ! Abhisit and his monkey have more blood on their hands (as well as cash)

the Red arsonists burnt down Zen / Central, repair to it as a direct response to their deeds. Reds to accept indirect responsibility for further cruel deaths.

reds to blame? government to blame? y'all are making the yellows feel like wall flowers at this dance!

let's see,, if it wasn't for the airport..... nah forgert it hahaha

[bdenner]

pathetic,

again

pathetic,

Very informative responses indeed. Not a red shirt supporter are you? Edited October 29, 2010 by bdenner

[jdinasia]

the Red arsonists burnt down Zen / Central, repair to it as a direct response to their deeds. Reds to accept indirect responsibility for further cruel deaths.

pathetic,

The legal issue here is "depraved indifference". It can plausibly be argued that the direct action of the redshirts caused the subsequent events. Mitigating factors would make the case almost impossible to prove. (Mitigating factors would include the actions of the construction company etc. ... If the construction company did THEIR job correctly then the scaffolding would not have failed.)

[Lumumba]

I'm not in the least surprised, Only last week I had to lend our scaffolder a spanner to tighten nuts on fixings as he just hung on them after hand tightening them to check if safe enough !!! Also same week took my sons bicycle to a reputable (god only knows how) bicycle repair shop for two new tyres to be fitted. It was returned with painted white 'Direction of travel' markings facing backwards and a nut missing.

They were really jostling with the Laotians and Nigerians at the back of the queue when God handed out brains weren't they.

Wanted to reply to that but saw your handle name as UKfool.