Shoddy Repairs Caused Deadly Bridge Collapse In Ayutthaya

[webfact]

Shoddy repairs caused deadly bridge collapse: EIT
THE NATION



AYUTTHAYA: -- Criminal proceedings are to be launched against officials and contractors who oversaw the renovation of a suspension bridge in Ayutthaya prior to its deadly collapse in April, after the Engineering Institute of Thailand (EIT) yesterday confirmed an initial finding that the collapse resulted from the use of substandard cables.

Five people were killed and many were injured in the collapse.

The seven accused include five officials of Tha Lung municipality, two of whom were responsible for hiring the contractors and two of whom acted as project foremen. |The other two accused are representatives of local commu-nities that jointly contracted to conduct the renovation several years ago.

The conclusions published yesterday by the EIT, which is under the patronage of His Majesty the King, are in line with an earlier finding by the provincial Public Works Office that the slings used, including the main cables, were of lower quality than required in the project's specifications.

In its statement, read out yesterday in Ayutthaya by the chief of the Disaster Mitigation and Rescue Operations Office, the EIT said most of the cables selected at the recommendation of the seven accused did not meet the required quality standards, while a number of construction methods used did not meet the project's specifications.

The provincial authorities will coordinate with municipal officials in Tha Rua district to identify the five officials and take criminal action against them, while police would be responsible for bringing the two contractors to justice.


-- The Nation 2013-06-07

[Gsxrnz]

I wonder if they had blueprints and specifications for the repairs that were to be carried out in accordance with some form of recognised engineering or quality standards?

Or did they just pop down to the local Homepro in the Vigo and chuck some gear in the back that looked as though it might do the job, after deciding how much they could skim off the project price?

[arthurboy]

Corruption. End of.

[TomTao]

I wonder if the bridge disaster is in any way symbolic of the direction Thailand is headed if the rampant corruption that plagues this country is not halted?

[jaltsc]

This article makes the article about Surapong wanting to emulate German R&D a JOKE.

[NongKhaiKid]

Same old type of story, same old word usage such as " shoddy " and no doubt same old reasons why it happened. Follow this with same old report, same old reasons / excuses and same old promises that everything will be improved.

It's quite an orderly and predictable life really.

[worgeordie]

Went down scrap yard,found some cables,yes they will do !!

cutting corners a Thai pass time,and life is cheap here,and

nobody ever seems to go to jail for corruption,thats why it

will never stop, plenty of upside with no consequences.

regards Worgeordie

[Bellweather]

Went down scrap yard,found some cables,yes they will do !!

cutting corners a Thai pass time,and life is cheap here,and

nobody ever seems to go to jail for corruption,thats why it

will never stop, plenty of upside with no consequences.

regards Worgeordie

Even cheaper cost if the scrapyard is owned by a relative or friend. A discounted discount.

[Cuban]

Thailand hub of highest engineering standards in construction.

This and the MRTA incident show that education and professional standards at the levels that matter are not working.

But still refuse to utilise non-Thai experts, Thai lives are cheap.

[GeorgeO]

I wonder if the bridge disaster is in any way symbolic of the direction Thailand is headed if the rampant corruption that plagues this country is not halted?

In a word ... Yes!

[Ianatlarge]

Fine to criticise Thailand for this type of thing (and it is correct to criticise), but did not a bridge just fall down and a fertiliser plant just blow up—in the USA? Will justice be served in any case, I suspect not. A great deal of hot air and paper shuffling, the passage of time, a few minor convictions and reparations, then nothing.

[trainman34014]

It will all be swept under the carpet and vanish into history. Nobody will end up going to jail. or lose their jobs or business. It's the Thai way; make a lot of noise so the 'people' think that justice will be done... and then do nowt and carry on as normal. Too many free rides and get out of jail cards for corrupt, useless and inept so called 'officials' who are 'connected' and therefore not expected to take any responsibility.

At least if a bridge falls down in the West or a factory blows up we know with certainty that someone will be punished accordingly if they were at fault.

[winstonc]

nothing happens because the victims families are quite happy to take a few thousand baht for it,,and if there not offered money,you dont see an article of them outside the offices with a placard protesting about an injustice,and getting the media there to report about it do you,,,,(he killed my husband,but its ok i dont want them to lose face,how will we eat,i know daughter =patong=money=problem solved,phew thats ok then,and the fortune teller told me the lottery numbers),lifes great here,,thats why those foreigners come here,,,

[clockman]

more inactive posts comimg! T.I.T.

[BuddhaMind]

Fine to criticise Thailand for this type of thing (and it is correct to criticise), but did not a bridge just fall down and a fertiliser plant just blow up—in the USA? Will justice be served in any case, I suspect not. A great deal of hot air and paper shuffling, the passage of time, a few minor convictions and reparations, then nothing.

Have to agree with the other person that commented on your post here. The difference is... in the west, and especially the USA, those at fault will definitely pay, and pay dearly. It's why there's another group of people that hate lawyers in the US. The problem is, sometimes things just happen, with no fault to bestow, but these lawyers still try to find someone to sue. But that's a whole other story. Anyway, the difference is that justice is not usually served in this country. People are killed regularly here, and it's like a blip on the screen, no meaning, no value, who cares, move along. And then really, you want to start comparing construction standards with the USA? That's like calling the very tall Thai boy at your high school as talented as Michael Jordan. Puhleeeze.

[drdoom6996]

Instead of finding somebody to blame. Why not spend the money on enforcing the existing safety standards and hiring a Safety Professional to ensure that they are complied with and upgraded as necessary. I understand that this must be an expat as Thais will be bought as with the bridge collapse and the beam falling from a crane lift in downtown Bangkok. I know I'm dreaming.

[oldsailor35]

Fine to criticise Thailand for this type of thing (and it is correct to criticise), but did not a bridge just fall down and a fertiliser plant just blow up—in the USA? Will justice be served in any case, I suspect not. A great deal of hot air and paper shuffling, the passage of time, a few minor convictions and reparations, then nothing.

So! how is this tied to a bridge in Ayutthaya ?

[EyesWideOpen]

I am shocked .......

[dunque]

Fine to criticise Thailand for this type of thing (and it is correct to criticise), but did not a bridge just fall down and a fertiliser plant just blow up—in the USA? Will justice be served in any case, I suspect not. A great deal of hot air and paper shuffling, the passage of time, a few minor convictions and reparations, then nothing.

So! how is this tied to a bridge in Ayutthaya ?

I think the point was that such an event does not only happen in Thailand, and that no one would use such events elsewhere as a trigger to go off on a widely generalised accusation of a the entire Thai nation being corrupt.

That's all.

[Joe Mamma]

And there are those who believe corruption and graft are harmless!

[chainarong]

It's good to see the Inspector of Machinery dept , work safe inspectors , consulting engineers, all passed this bridge as safe, they did didn't they???

[Soutpeel]

Instead of finding somebody to blame. Why not spend the money on enforcing the existing safety standards and hiring a Safety Professional to ensure that they are complied with and upgraded as necessary. I understand that this must be an expat as Thais will be bought as with the bridge collapse and the beam falling from a crane lift in downtown Bangkok. I know I'm dreaming.

Why is it I get very worried when people start using the term "safety professional" Expat or otherwise...Having had 25 years plus of dealing with so called "safety professionals" all I can really say for the most part, the only thing that "professional" about them is the fancy bit of paper they are issued with...but of course if you wish to employ somebody to run around a site telling people to put their safety glasses on then knock yourself out..

[fatfather]

...

The conclusions published yesterday by the EIT, which is under the
patronage of His Majesty the King, are in line with an earlier finding
by the provincial Public Works Office that the slings used, including
the main cables, were of lower quality than required in the project's
specifications...

This means, that the bridge was faulty from day one on. Main cables are not replaced during an overhaul. Who commissioned the bridge, who originally ordered and confirmed the quality of the cables. From the beginning on the construction company set lifes at risk for the benefit of their private wallet. Sad, sad, sad.

Fatfather

[Soutpeel]

What are you an accountant?

offshore O&G for over 25 years... so had plenty of experience with so called "safety professionals" in my time

[AsterixThai]

They will fix it again and generate new bribes

[how241]

It will all be swept under the carpet and vanish into history. Nobody will end up going to jail. or lose their jobs or business. It's the Thai way; make a lot of noise so the 'people' think that justice will be done... and then do nowt and carry on as normal. Too many free rides and get out of jail cards for corrupt, useless and inept so called 'officials' who are 'connected' and therefore not expected to take any responsibility.

At least if a bridge falls down in the West or a factory blows up we know with certainty that someone will be punished accordingly if they were at fault.

+1

[salapau]

No standards of practice or safety, unfortunately Thai's don't care about anything apart from money.

[pacovl46]

How stupid to you actually have to be to use substandard cables for a bridge and think you'll get away with it???

[rotary]

I noticed several years ago at Lao Prao one of the major retailers there had high heavy duty shelving. These shelves were supported by +/-3/8" cables with clamps holding them. They simply had a loop with no thimble hard eye to relieve point stress on the wire and the clamps were only one on each end and installed the wrong way with the clamp saddle holding the dead end which is wrong. I am sure a major contractor installed these shelves for this major store. Simple basics were not followed at all. I would guess the same on the bridge

Edited June 7, 2013 by rotary

[MaxYakov]

Corruption. End of.

Hah! A mere pebble in the continuous roadway of corruption. Too bad lives were lost in this case.

Edited June 7, 2013 by MaxYakov