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2025 Bangkok skyscraper collapse

Coordinates: 13°48′8″N 100°32′50″E / 13.80222°N 100.54722°E / 13.80222; 100.54722
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2025 Bangkok skyscraper collapse
Part of the 2025 Myanmar earthquake
A dashcam still of the building collapsing (seen on left)
Date28 March 2025 (2025-03-28)
LocationKamphaeng Phet Road
Coordinates13°48′8″N 100°32′50″E / 13.80222°N 100.54722°E / 13.80222; 100.54722
TypeStructural failure
Cause2025 Myanmar earthquake
Deaths29[1]
Non-fatal injuries33[2]
Missing73

On 28 March 2025, a still under-construction building intended for the State Audit Office[3] collapsed in Bangkok, Thailand, following a major earthquake that originated in Myanmar.[4][5][6] It resulted in 29[1] confirmed worker deaths and 33 injuries, while 77 remained unaccounted for as of 31 March.[7][2] Already topped-out, the building was 30% complete and, at the time of collapse, undergoing piping and glass wall installation.[8]

Background

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The skyscraper in mid-December 2024, 3 months before the collapse.

The skyscraper, located on Kamphaeng Phet Road, next to Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal and near the Chatuchak Weekend Market in Bangkok,[9] was 33 stories tall, with a height of 137 m or 449 ft, prior to the collapse.[10] Construction had started in 2020 and the building topped out in April 2024 as per the China Railway No.10 Engineering Group.[11] The contractors were Italian-Thai Development under the supervision of China Railway Engineering Corporation.[12] At the time of the earthquake, the glass facade and internal installations were being added. The construction budget was 2.136 billion baht (USD 63 million).[12]

Collapse

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On 28 March 2025 at 12:50:52 MMT (06:20:52 UTC), a Mw 7.7 earthquake struck the Sagaing Region of Myanmar, with an epicenter close to Mandalay, the country's second-largest city. The strike-slip shock achieved a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent).[13] Despite Bangkok being located more than 1,000 kilometers from the epicenter, heavy shaking was felt in the city due to the supershear nature of the seismic rupture and Bangkok's soft soil amplifying the energy released by the earthquake, which led to the collapse.[14]

Thai defense minister Phumtham Wechayachai initially stated that "at least three people were killed in the building collapse and 90 were missing".[10] Search-and-rescue operations at the site are underway.[15] Several bodies were recovered. A total of more than 100 others, mostly labourers, were believed to have been trapped under the rubble,[16] with that number being reduced to 79 the following day.[17] At least eight people were later confirmed killed and 68 people were taken to nearby hospitals, while 15 others trapped beneath rubble were reported to be alive.[3][18] Rescue workers brought in excavators to start combing the site for survivors. Excavators were dredging piled-up soil and a crane was deployed to remove debris.[18] Some of the victims of the collapse were believed to be migrant workers from Myanmar.[19]

Response

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Following the earthquake, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra visited the site of the collapse on the evening of 28 March[20] and ordered the formation of a committee of experts to investigate the collapse within a week.[21] On 2 April, she visited the site again and met with relatives of the collapse victims.[22]

The United States deployed personnel to assist in rescue efforts at the site.[23] The Israeli embassy also sent a scanning device that was used to search for survivors.[24]

Local authorities started investigations into "the construction quality, materials used, and whether building codes for earthquake resilience were adequately followed."[25] On 30 March, Industry Minister Akanat Promphan said at an on-site news conference that "anomalies" had been found in the steel and samples taken.[26] On 31 March, a man was arrested for falsely claiming that his wife was trapped in the building.[27]

In the People's Republic China, online discussion on the collapse of the building was censored in the same way as commentary on other Tofu-dreg projects.[28][29]

Thailand's Ministry of Industry later said that one of the steel bars used in the collapsed National Audit Office building was substandard and came from a Chinese company in Thailand.[30] The company providing it had been ordered to close since December 2024.[31]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "เจออีก 14 ร่างใต้ซากตึกถล่ม ผู้ว่าฯ กทม. ยืนยันยังไม่ยุติการค้นหา" (in Thai). Bangkok Biz News. 2 April 2025.
  2. ^ a b "รายงานสถานการณ์จากศูนย์เอราวัณ กรณี เหตุแผ่นดินไหว" [Situation report from Erawan Medical Emergency Center regarding the earthquake]. BMA Facebook page (in Thai and English). Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. 29 March 2025. Retrieved 30 March 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Chatuchak building collapse due to unstable structure: Bangkok dept". The Nation. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  4. ^ "Powerful Myanmar earthquake kills dozens, also hits Thailand". Reuters. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  5. ^ "Earthquake rocks Thailand and Myanmar, triggering the collapse of a Bangkok high-rise". NPR. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  6. ^ "Myanmar-Thailand earthquake live updates: More than 100 dead, 700 injured in Myanmar". ABC News. 30 March 2025 [28 March 2025]. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  7. ^ Reals, Tucker (31 March 2025). "Thailand probes earthquake toppling of Bangkok high-rise as official sees "something suspicious"". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 31 March 2025.
  8. ^ "Chatuchak building collapse due to unstable structure: Bangkok dept". nationthailand. 28 March 2025.
  9. ^ "Dozens of workers trapped in collapsed Bangkok high-rise". Bangkok Post. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  10. ^ a b "Bangkok high-rise collapses after powerful 7.7 earthquake rocks Myanmar and Thailand". PBS. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  11. ^ Qi'an, Xu (28 March 2025). "緬甸地震｜泰國摩天大樓倒塌5死 建商為中國鐵路十局去年才封頂" [Myanmar earthquake | 5 killed in collapse of Thai skyscraper, built by China Railway 10th Bureau, which only completed the roof last year]. Hong Kong01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  12. ^ a b Jay (28 March 2025). "อาคาร "สตง." ถล่ม! สะเทือน ITD ผู้ก่อสร้าง หลังแผ่นดินไหว" ["State Audit Office" building collapses! ITD, the builder, is shaken after the earthquake.]. Business stock news online (in Thai). Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  13. ^ ANSS. "M 7.7 – 16 km NNW of Sagaing, Myanmar 2025". Comprehensive Catalog. U.S. Geological Survey.
  14. ^ "What caused the Myanmar earthquake - and why did it make a tower in Bangkok collapse?". BBC. 31 March 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  15. ^ "Dashcam captures moment Bangkok building collapses". BBC News. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  16. ^ "Myanmar quake toll set to rise as Thailand scrambles to rescue trapped Bangkok workers". CNN. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  17. ^ "ลุยค้นหาผู้ประสบภัยแผ่นดินไหว ตึก สตง. ถล่ม เสียชีวิต 8 บาดเจ็บ 9 สูญหาย 79 ราย" [Search continues for SAO building collapse victims – 8 dead, 9 injured, 79 missing]. Isra News Agency (in Thai). 29 March 2025. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  18. ^ a b "Myanmar earthquake death toll soars past 1,000 as Thailand scrambles to rescue trapped Bangkok workers". CNN. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  19. ^ "At least 15 still alive under Bangkok skyscraper rubble, rescuers say". BBC News. 29 March 2025. Retrieved 30 March 2025.
  20. ^ "First deaths confirmed as 'mass casualty' quake hits Myanmar, Thailand". France 24. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  21. ^ "PM orders committee to investigate the collapse of the SAO building". The Nation. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  22. ^ "Paetongtarn visits families of collapsed building victims". The Nation. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  23. ^ "US military personnel join rescue operation in Bangkok". The Nation. 30 March 2025. Retrieved 30 March 2025.
  24. ^ "Local death count from Friday's tremor rises to 18". Bangkok Post. 30 March 2025. Retrieved 30 March 2025.
  25. ^ "Under-construction audit office in Bangkok collapses after Myanmar earthquake". The Online Citizen. 28 March 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  26. ^ "Myanmar-Thailand earthquake: Foreign rescuers join frantic search for Myanmar quake survivors". BBC News. 29 March 2025. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
  27. ^ "Man arrested for fake story about pregnant wife in collapsed building". The Nation. 31 March 2025. Retrieved 1 April 2025.
  28. ^ Lu, Alan (1 April 2025). "China muzzles online debate on construction standards after Bangkok building collapse". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  29. ^ Colville, Alex (2 April 2025). "Deadly Blunders in Bangkok". China Media Project. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  30. ^ Rakkanam, Pimuk (3 April 2025). "Collapse of Chinese-built high rise spurs wave of anger in Thailand". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  31. ^ Some steel samples fail to meet standard in State Audit Office building
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