Kunming Airport overpass collapses

• Source: Global Times
• [04:56 January 05 2010]
• Comments

Gan Yonghui, chief engineer with the same group, said that the possibility of bad weather causing the incident could not be ruled out.

Cheng Daye, with the Beijing-based Central Research Institute of Building and Construction, said initial reports on the cause of the incident suggested a possible scaffold collapse broke the overpass.

Local officials, including Liu Ping, the vice governor of Yunnan Province, and Wang Daoxing, vice mayor of Kunming, promised to "pay high compensation for the dead and the injured," without giving details.

Vowing to hold those who caused the accident responsible, Liu ordered an overhaul of the airport construction and said construction could only resume after all potential safety hazards were cleared up and construction items were certified.

Kunming Airport is designed to be a major aviation hub and China's gateway to Southeast Asia and South Asia. With a total investment of 23 billion yuan ($3.4 billion), the airport is expected to handle 38 million passengers per year when put into operation.

According to a report last month, the construction quality and safety management for the airport were deemed satisfactory.

Local residents were shocked at the accident.

"The fortunate result of this unfortunate tragedy is that the overpass collapsed before the airport is put into service," Chen Xiang, a Kunming resident, told the Global Times. "Otherwise the loss would be unimaginable."

Zhang Ke, a professor at the School of Art and Design of Yunnan University, told the Global Times Monday that it is important to take preventive measures, strengthen construction supervision and train workers.

Guo Qiang and Liang Chen contributed to this story