(ATTN: ADDS decision process, comments in paras 6, 9)
The South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport announced Sunday that they will be recommending a 10-month business suspension for GS Engineering & Construction Corp. due to the collapse of a parking garage at an apartment complex in Geomdan-dong, Incheon, on April 29.
The ministry found that the builder had not employed enough metal reinforcing rods and had not managed the construction process properly.
This photo taken July 6, 2023, shows the construction site of an apartment complex in Incheon, west of Seoul, where a parking garage under construction collapsed in April. (Yonhap)
The ministry will be recommending an eight-month business suspension under the land minister’s authority and asking the Seoul city government to impose an additional two-month business halt for negligent safety checks.
The government is also looking into the possibility of suspending or cancelling the license of subcontractors and design companies involved in the construction project. This decision will be made after a government committee, composed of experts, finishes their hearings and deliberation procedures, which is expected to take three to five months.
The ministry also determined that they will be requesting a police probe into the case for potential violations of the law by the related firms.
Some buildings at the Geomdan complex were found to have not met standards in terms of the concrete strength due to the suspected shoddy compaction process, the ministry said.
“I feel a heavy responsibility for causing public concern,” Land Minister Won Hee-ryong stated. “We will take a zero-tolerance stance on any illegalities committed by those responsible for such incidents.”
GS earlier said it will rebuild all 17 apartment buildings at the complex.
In the wake of the collapse, the ministry conducted an inspection on 83 sites of construction led by GS across the country, and no issues were detected in terms of the use of metal bars or the strength of the concrete, the ministry added.
This file photo taken May 2, 2023, shows a collapsed section of a parking garage at an apartment building under construction in Incheon, west of Seoul. (Yonhap)
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport is recommending a 10-month business suspension for GS Engineering & Construction Corp. due to the collapse of a parking garage in April. This suspension is composed of an eight-month halt under the land minister’s authority and an additional two-month suspension from the Seoul city government for negligent safety checks. The government is also considering the possibility of suspending or cancelling the license of subcontractors and design companies involved in the construction project. Related Articles State housing developer LH searched in probe into shoddy apartment construction (LEAD) Gov’t to launch safety checks on flat-plate apartments in private sector (2nd LD) Gov’t vows compensation for residents amid probe into faulty apartment construction (LEAD) Yoon vows to dismantle construction ‘cartel’ following faulty construction of underground parking lots (LEAD) GS Engineering & Construction dips on woes over apartment parking lot collapse