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The Buildings Department has completed its investigation into the collapse of an industrial building under demolition at No. 19 Sze Shan Street in Yau Tong last month.
The Director of Buildings, Mr. Leung Chin-man, had accepted the report submitted by the three-member investigation team yesterday.
Speaking at a press conference today (Thursday), Mr. Leung said the cause of the collapse was the overloading of the 5th floor of the building by an excessive amount of debris accumulated on that floor, where the demolition work was being carried out.
"The findings of the investigation also revealed possibility of human error in causing the incident," he said.
The investigation report will be referred to the Department of Justice for consideration of any further action to be taken.
Mr. Leung pointed out that demolition work was a high risk building activity and the department would recommend the introduction of the following measures to step up supervision of demolition sites:-
1. a proper debris disposal and management system should be set up at every demolition site;
2. a resident engineer should be appointed for complex demolition sites;
3. demolition workers should attend training courses and at a later stage, be trade tested on demolition skills; and
4. the entire demolition process should be video taped to identify any irregularities.
Mr. Leung stressed that the incident underlined the importance of proper debris management.
"The Buildings Department will shortly issue Practice Notes to all Authorised Persons (AP), Registered Structural Engineer (RSE), and Registered Contractors for the requirement of setting up a proper debris disposal and management system at every demolition site as a condition for our issue of consent to commence work," he said.
As a condition for approving demolition plans, Mr. Leung said the department would require APs or RSEs to appoint a resident engineer to provide full time supervision for complex demolition sites.
"Site workers for demolition will be required to attend courses organized by training institutes such as the Construction Industry Training Authority. At a later stage, the workers will be required to pass a trade test before being allowed to carry out demolition works," Mr. Leung said.
"Demolition contractors will also be required to install a video camera at every demolition site to record in full the demolition process to identify any irregularities on site.
"We will promptly consult the building profession and industry on these new measures with a view to implementing them as soon as possible," Mr Leung added.
End/Thursday, November 29, 2001
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