An anti-corruption watchdog had flagged irregularities in the construction of a Bangkok skyscraper that collapsed following the 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar last week. It said the government had threatened to cancel the project earlier this year because of delays.
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00:00Thai Prime Minister Petong Tharn Shinawatra on Monday once again visited the site where
00:09an under-construction building collapsed following the deadly earthquake in Myanmar last week.
00:15Petong Tharn received updates on the operation to search for survivors.
00:24After her visit, rescuers extracted the body of a victim trapped under the rubble, though
00:29the search teams still believe that there are survivors at the site.
01:00Authorities said some 75 people were still missing and believed to be buried under the
01:08debris.
01:09They said at least 12 people were killed and 18 others injured.
01:14The magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Myanmar's Sagaing district on March 28th has killed
01:20some 1,700 people and sent tremors to Thailand, China and other countries.
01:27The earthquake caused the 30-story building in Chatuchak district to crumble, and the
01:32government said it was the only building that collapsed, while other buildings experienced
01:38structural damage.
01:40The incident raised questions on the building that is set to be the state audit office upon
01:45completion.
01:46Anti-Corruption Organization of Thailand said it had flagged irregularities in the construction
01:52of the building, and the government had threatened to cancel the project earlier this year because
01:56of delays.
01:58The audit office said the project, which began in 2020 and is supposed to be completed in
02:032026, was only 30 percent completed before it collapsed.
02:08They said sometimes the number of workers on site were much fewer than there should
02:12be, causing delays, and potentially there was a rush to complete the project towards
02:18the end, causing a drop in the standard of work.
02:22The project was carried out by a joint venture between Italian-Thai development PCL and a
02:27subsidiary of China Railway Group.
02:30The government has ordered agencies to investigate the cause of the collapse within a week.
02:36Authorities said they are investigating metal and steel parts taken from the site for further
02:40tests.
02:52For more UN videos visit www.un.org