24 Myanmar nationals missing in collapse of Thai SAO’s under-construction building
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Htet Nadi (NP News) - April 7
A total of 83 workers, including 24 from Myanmar, are missing after Bangkok skyscraper under construction collapsed following the earthquake in Myanmar last Friday, the Thai Ministry of Labour said.
The Thai Ministry of Labour stated on April 1 that the State Audit Office (SAO), which was under construction and collapsed due to the earthquake, was being used by Thai nationals as well as foreign workers from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.
Thai Labour Minister Phipat Ratchakana said he had received a report on the collapse of the SAO, and that 83 people were still missing as of April 1.
The missing workers include 55 Thais, three Cambodians, 24 Myanmar nationals and one Laotian.
The bodies of 14 people who died in the building collapse so far include three Myanmar nationals.
The Myanmar nationals were working in Thailand as legal MoU workers.
Thai Labor Minister Phipat Ratchakana expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and said he hoped rescue teams would be able to find and rescue the remaining people as soon as possible, according to reports from Thailand.
Initial tests of materials collected from the site revealed the presence of substandard steel in the debris of the 30-story building, according to officials from the Ministry of Industry. They noted that further analysis would be necessary.
The Thai government has launched an investigation into the cause of the collapse of the skyscraper, which was the only building in Bangkok to fully collapse when a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck central Myanmar on Friday.
Construction of the building began in 2020 and is being carried out by a joint venture between Italian Thai Development PCL and China Railway Number 10 Ltd.
In response, the Thai government is reportedly expanding its investigation into other construction projects linked to the Chinese contractor of the SAO under-construction building. After Tuesday's cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra revealed that she had instructed multiple agencies to investigate all construction projects awarded to China Railway No.10 Engineering Group.