Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt on Tuesday ordered relevant agencies to provide assistance and compensation to people affected by the deadly accident at a construction site on the On Nut-Lat Krabang overpass.
A section of the 20-metre-high elevated concrete bridge and its supporting beam fell onto the road in front of Lotus Department Store on Luang Phaeng Road in Bangkok’s Lat Krabang district at around 6pm on Monday.
Two construction workers were killed and 17 people were injured in the accident. Vehicles were also damaged and traffic was blocked.
Chadchart said the construction project had been contracted to Tharawan-Napha Joint Venture. It started in February 2021 and was expected to be completed in August 2023. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the deadline was pushed back to December 2024.
The 1.66 billion baht project covers construction of a four-lane, 3.5 kilometre-long overpass as well as lighting, drainage and other supporting systems.
Chadchart said that an initial investigation found that a segment of the overpass had collapsed, causing the crane’s launching truss attached to it by slings to lose balance and fall onto two bridge structures. This subsequently caused the structures to fall onto the road and block two traffic lanes.
The governor said officials brought in three 200-tonne cranes at about midnight on Monday to remove the launching truss, which had broken into four pieces. Since each piece weighs about seven tonnes, they will not be removed until Wednesday, he added.
Chadchart said officials from the Department of Public Works need to evaluate the situation carefully and plan removal steps to prevent the rest of the structure from collapsing.
The governor also tasked the district office and relevant agencies to help prevent traffic from flowing to Luang Phaeng Road, which is currently closed in both directions.
It is expected to reopen in three days.
Local officials have also been instructed to provide assistance to households that experienced power outages due to the accident.
Police reported that an engineer at the project was killed on the spot while the other worker died at Chularat 9 Hospital. Eight of the 17 injured people were sent to Chularat 9 Hospital and nine were transported to Lat Krabang 2 Hospital.
The Bureau of the Royal Household has announced that His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn has accepted all the deceased and injured persons in the accident under his royal patronage.