A powerful earthquake struck Myanmar last Friday (the 28th), with strong tremors felt in Bangkok, Thailand, leading to the collapse of a 33-story building under construction in Chatuchak. The building, a joint venture between China Railway 10th Engineering Group and Italy-Thai Development Public Company Limited (ITD), was originally intended to house the new offices of the Thai Auditorium. The collapse of the Auditorium building, while an adjacent unfinished building remained intact, has raised questions.
A powerful earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale struck Myanmar's Sagaing region at a depth of just 10 kilometers. The earthquake rippled across a radius of approximately 1,000 kilometers, affecting cities including Bangkok and Chiang Mai in Thailand. However, in Bangkok, the only building to instantly collapse was the Thai Audit Office building, which was contracted and constructed by a Chinese company.
Wang Ji, a writer living in Chiang Mai, told Radio Free Asia in an interview on Monday (31st) that when the earthquake struck, he witnessed a wave over a meter high in his swimming pool. However, the more than 30 villas in the complex remained intact, with no apparent damage. He said, "I was showering when I suddenly fainted. I wondered if my blood pressure was high. Looking up from the kitchen, I saw waves one or two meters high in the swimming pool. Yefu took a photo, which was used by China News Service. Our building is in great condition; there aren't any cracks at all."
The construction quality was questioned, but the "unfinished building" is safe and sound
Regarding the instantaneous collapse of a 33-story building in Bangkok during the earthquake, Wang Ji said the collapse of this new building, built by a Chinese company, was "a bit unbelievable." This has sparked heated discussion among netizens at home and abroad for days: "The Chinese-built building collapsed completely in five seconds, but the unfinished building next to it, built by Thais, is now completely fine. Right now, all the buildings in Bangkok are seeing price drops, but this unfinished building hasn't moved at all, and its value has suddenly increased. After the building collapsed, China Railway No. 10 Bureau removed all promotional photos and other content from their website, and reporting on these things is now prohibited in China."
In Bangkok, the earthquake had killed at least 19 people by the afternoon of the 31st, with many more missing or injured. The building, which was about 30% complete at the time of the collapse, suffered severe structural damage and collapsed within seconds, sending a cloud of dust obscuring the sky and spreading to surrounding roads and stations.
The contractor is questioned and the construction quality is under scrutiny
The building's collapse has raised public concerns about the quality of the building and its earthquake-resistant design. China Railway 10th Engineering Group Co., Ltd. (CREG) had stated that the project would become its signature project in Thailand, emphasizing high-quality construction. However, the building's rapid collapse during the earthquake has raised questions about its construction quality and earthquake resistance.
Mr. Li, the person in charge of the China Railway No. 1 Construction Unit, said in an interview with this station that the main reasons for the collapse of the Audit Building in Bangkok were not only the design itself, but also the foundation and main building materials. "It also has something to do with the materials. They cut corners. Many of the building materials used should be domestic. Thailand does not have large-scale building material factories. China's construction industry used to have a good reputation overseas. Dubai's 'Seven-Star' (Burj Al Arab) was built by construction workers from Jiangsu, China. In recent years, there have been many problems with domestic highways and buildings. The general construction industry has processes such as design modification and approval from superiors. For example, if the original 45-gauge steel is changed to 30-gauge steel, if the original design unit approves, the construction unit can do so. The so-called addition or reduction of materials and projects are all within their own circle. It can be said to be a 'quasi-rule', not an 'unwritten rule'."
Mr. Li explained that during construction, many items can be added or subtracted at any time, but this requires the investor's consent. Without the investor's consent, arbitrarily adding or subtracting items, or changing steel and material specifications, is a violation. He said, "Whether the investor is aware of the situation, whether they agreed, or whether they offered any incentives, etc., is unclear. In short, as long as the building doesn't collapse, everything is easy to resolve; once it collapses, everything becomes clear. Now the Thai government has to speak out."
Following the incident, China Railway 10th Bureau Group deleted previous posts about the building's topping-out ceremony from its WeChat official account and official website. The Thai government has ordered a thorough investigation into the project's quality and is demanding that the relevant companies provide construction data and earthquake resistance assessment reports.
Thai police seize documents, four Chinese men under investigation
The Thai Rath newspaper reported that four Chinese men entered the collapsed building the day after the accident (the 29th) and took a large number of documents. These documents included construction materials for contractors and subcontractors, including contractor information, construction inspection notices, RFID tags, and documents related to electrical and transportation systems. Police have seized all the documents and are collaborating with the Bangkok Metropolitan Government on further investigations. The preliminary decision is to file charges against the four individuals.
Construction of the collapsed building began in 2020 and topped out on March 31, 2024, with a planned completion date of 2026. Du Yinghong, an artist living in Thailand, told this station that over the past decade, China's "infrastructure maniac" has not only left behind a large number of "shoddy" projects in China, such as "crooked" and "brittle" buildings, but has also now spread abroad: "Whether in Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, or other Belt and Road Initiative countries, any cooperation project involving China will not meet 100% of standards because corruption is everywhere."
Following the incident, Chinese Ambassador to Thailand Han Zhiqiang, along with a delegation of experts from China's Ministry of Emergency Management, met with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin. During the meeting, Anutin stated that the Thai government will expedite the investigation into the cause of the building collapse. The Ministry of Interior has established a committee to investigate the incident and is expected to submit a report within seven days. The investigation will include the designers, construction supervisors, and contractors, with a focus on whether substandard materials were used or construction plans were not adhered to. Anutin also emphasized that Chinese contractors were not allowed to enter the accident site.
