A bell tower restoration project at an old temple in the Bangkok Noi area ended in tragedy as the structure collapsed this week.
One worker was killed and 10 more injured in the incident. At least two were seriously hurt. A probe into the incident was ordered by the chief of the the Fine Arts Department and is currently under way.
The department had commissioned a local construction firm to restore the structure at Wat Phraya Tham Voraviharn temple, which dates back to King Narai of the Ayutthaya era. According to historical records, the collapsed chedi was added to the temple during a major restoration project during the reign of King Rama II.
Thai media reported that the restoration work began two months ago.
The deadly collapse brings into question the knowledge of ancient buildings -- or lack thereof -- on the part of those involved, in particular the construction company's engineers who were responsible for the project.
Experts from the Engineering Institute of Thailand (EIT) inspected the site and found that workers from the firm, Preeyakit Construction, had made errors when restoring it. They said the structure, like other buildings from that period, was built without the support of steel bars. The style requires a high degree of craftsmanship and has since become rare.
According to the EIT experts, it requires a special method and specific skills on the part of workers and engineers to prevent such buildings from collapsing. Without the steel bars, they can collapse when workers try to renovate them, as happened in this case.
Low-skilled workers are not supposed to have such knowledge. But how come the company's engineers were not aware of this? In fact, as a matter of principle, the company was supposed to hand its restoration plan, with working details, to the Fine Arts Department for approval due to the temple's historical significance.
The department never disclosed this information to the public. But if the company had submitted the tower restoration work plan based on the wrong methodology, how could the department grant approval, without detecting the errors that not only breached the old wisdom, but also put the lives of those working on it at risk?
Needless to say, the victims were the breadwinners of their families. The loss of the worker who died, and the cost of prolonged medical treatment for the injured, has dealt a heavy blow to their respective families.
However, the Preeyakit company is no stranger to controversy.
Last year, it, along with the Fine Arts Department, were grilled over the restoration of the main chedi at Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn), which was seen by many as shoddy and substandard work. The issue is still up for debate as the department vehemently defended the construction firm and itself as the one running the show.
More importantly, there are concerns that restoration projects commissioned by the department seem to be limited to just a few construction firms. Not to mention that some firms have issues regarding the skills and knowledge of their employees, despite these being crucial when handling historical or archeologically significant buildings. The information about Preeyakit was exposed only after the project went awry. The Fine Arts Department has to clear the air about this.
Even if there was no fraud or nepotism involved in the selection process, as speculated, and everybody strictly followed state procedures, the controversy over Wat Arun and the bell tower tragedy should make the state aware of possible shortcomings in the hiring/bidding process, which awards a project to whichever company offers the lowest bidding price.
As it becomes clear, a selection process that puts too much weight on pricing may be inappropriate for works that require special skills, especially when historical buildings are being restored.
It's time for those involved to realise the damages than can result from substandard restoration work, as it can cost a lot more than the original budget.
