Cause of tragedy yet to be established
Police are speeding up their investigation into the collapse of an elevated road under construction on Luang Pang Road in Lat Krabang to bring those responsible to justice.
Pol Col Chanawin Phuangphet, deputy chief of Metropolitan Police Division 3, said police are working with forensic experts and the Engineering Institute of Thailand (EIT) to gather evidence and establish the cause of the tragedy.
The contractor, a joint consortium of two construction companies — Tharawan Construction and Npa Construction — sent their representatives, mostly workers who witnessed the scene, to give information to the police.
He said officers have summoned the CEOs of the two companies to give information but they had not shown up yet. As of now, police must wait for reports from each related agency before proceeding with legal action, Pol Col Chanawin said.
Chiya Sirirak, director of the Office of Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Area 4, said on Thursday its officials have been working closely with police on the investigation.
She said the PACC would focus on the procurement process and the contract of the project to see if any officials had been derelict in their duties, Ms Chiya said.
The PACC has coordinated with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to ask for details and documents of the project and the contract. It will ask local residents about the damage caused by the incident and will question related officials about safety measures.
The collapsed 600-metre section — stretching from Lotus’s Lat Krabang branch to Jorakay Noi police station — is part of the 3.5-kilometre-long On Nut-Lat Krabang elevated road project. Two people were killed and 12 injured in the incident on Monday. evening.
Pol Col Thanawat Hinyokhin, superintendent of Anti-Corruption Division 1, said drones have been deployed to inspect the overall damage to the structure and will question engineering experts about the incident.
Meanwhile, Deputy Bangkok governor Wisanu Subsompon said City Hall is working on demolishing the collapsed segment to pave the way for road traffic to resume. The work is expected to be completed on Friday, he said.
He said the BMA will work with an engineering team from EIT to find more evidence. The team will collect concrete samples to test the structure’s strength, he said.