THE Expressway Authority of Thailand (Exat) said this late this morning (March 15) that it will take a week to clear the area after the structure of a bridge being built in front of Dao Khanong checkpoint collapsed last night killing five people, injured 27, 20 men and seven women, with two others missing, Naewna newspaper said.
Mr. Surachet Laophulsuk, Exat’s governor, said after inspecting the site of the accident, from Rama 2 Soi 17 to 25, it will take a week to clear the debris so that motorists could start using the inbound section of Dao Khanong Expressway again. As for the damaged outbound section, it will take around a month to repair.
Exat will also be seeking compensation from those who caused the impact on the Dao Khanong Expressway. Those affected will receive fair compensation while those who were negligent must receive full punishment, he added
This construction is part of Rama III – Dao Khanong – Western Bangkok Outer Ring Road project. The third contract was awarded to ITD-VCB Joint Venture, consisting of Italian-Thai Development Pcl and Vichitbhan Construction Co. Ltd., with other contractors including Asian Engineering Consultants Co. Lt, Chotijinda Consultants Co. Ltd. and MAA Consultants Co. Ltd.
It was around 2 a.m. when the structure of this under-construction bridge collapsed onto the first stage expressway, which is the main route heading in and out of Bangkok with Rama II road being the key route to southern Thailand. Volunteers rushed there to help the victims taking the injured workers to the hospital.
A cement truck driver at the scene said at the time of the accident, concrete beams were being connected to pillars when suddenly a loud noise was heard from the structure before it collapsed.
Meanwhile People’s Party MP Nattapong Sumanotham urged the suspension of the construction of this bridge after repeated accidents had led to many deaths in a Facebook post today, Amarin TV said.
He pointed out to Deputy Prime Minister/ Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit that this is not the first time that construction accidents had occurred on Rama II road and it shows that the contractors’ measures are not sufficient to ensure safety.
“It is necessary to find the real cause of the accident and review whether the existing construction supervision measures are sufficient. It is time to solve the problem at its root so that such an incident does not happen again,” he said.
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Top, below and Front Page; Scenes of the collapsed under-construction bridge. Photos: Naewna
Insert: People’s MP Nattapong Sumanotham. Photo:Amarin TV
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