The Buildings Department on Saturday said it had found dozens of substandard columns at the MTR station that is currently under construction in Tung Chung West.

Around 30 such columns were identified by the registered structural engineers (RSE) working on the project.

The department asked that the RSE submit an investigation report and propose remedial measures by the middle of this month.

The department will review these submissions, continue to monitor the situation closely, and oversee the necessary corrective works to ensure that all construction meets the relevant safety and quality standards.

In response to media questions, the department indicated that it had identified the issues during a routine site inspection and quality audit on the 27th of last month.

Upon confirming that two concrete columns were substandard, the department said it immediately instructed the RSE team and the Registered Contractor to conduct a comprehensive investigation and carry out corrective works as soon as possible.

The MTR Corporation has since ordered a suspension of relevant construction activities.

As part of standard procedures, the RSE’s supervision team carried out further inspections following the progressive removal of the concrete work, uncovering similar defects in additional concrete columns; these findings were reported to the department last Tuesday.

The department further stated that, as the temporary supports for the floor slab had not yet been removed, the identified concrete defects posed no risk to the structural integrity of the station.

These temporary supports may only be removed once a team of registered structural engineers was satisfied with the relevant works.

The department said all such procedures were carried out in accordance with the approved plans while its staff had conducting routine inspections of the site.

A preliminary review by the department revealed no evidence of intentional deviation from the approved plans, nor had it found any instances where the follow-up actions taken by the personnel in charge violated relevant codes or regulations.




Edited by Tony Sabine