Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt says the underground railway tunnel beneath the collapsed Samsen Road is stable, denying claims the structure is moving.
Speaking on a Facebook livestream on Saturday, he said the claims may stem from miscommunication. The road collapsed near the entrance to Vajira Hospital on Samsen Road on Sept 24.
He said structures near the sinkhole, including the Samsen police station building and road surface nearby, remain stable with little to no movement or surface expansion. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has obtained a measurement device and is working around the clock. Regarding road surface repairs, Mr Chadchart said workers had levelled at least 9,400 cubic metres (m³) of sand, carried on at least 900 lorries, to reinforce the underground structure.
The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand’s (MRTA) contractor had done grouting work, applying a mixture of cement and hardener, around the tunnel. Workers will level 3,500 m³ of crushed stone in the next couple of days before placing metal sheets on the road surface to help with the Samsen station building removal.
That work will take seven days. The station will be rebuilt at the same spot. However, plans to reopen Samsen Road are still unclear, as this must be done with work on the electric railway tunnel to ensure road user safety.
On Friday, MRTA said its civil engineering contractor is working on soil quality improvement to strengthen those around the sinkhole. The MRTA said the contractor plans to level crushed stone in the area while working on reopening Vajira Hospital’s entrance.