The Ingenieur Vol 59 July-Sept 2014 The Ingenieur Vo. 59, July-Sept 2014 | Page 56

‟ INGENIEUR COLLAPSE OF Good NICOLL HIGHWAY communication IN SINGAPORE between the many parties involved is also essential in the building process. Nicoll Highway had been in use for about 48 years before a tragic disaster happened on Tuesday midafternoon, April 20, 2004. A cave-in and brought the surrounding area and the highway down into it, forming 30m deep ravine. The tragedy left four men dead. Good communication between the many parties involved is also essential in the building process. As such, poor communication and miscommunication can have dire consequences. The common issues are: (1) Poor communication between the various design professionals involved, e.g. engineers involved in conceptual design and those involved in the supervision of execution of works. (2) Poor communication between the fabricators and erectors. (3) Bad workmanship, which is often the result of failure to communicate the design decisions to the persons involved in executing them. (4) Compromises in professional ethics and failure to appreciate the responsibility of the profession to the community at large. Source: www.steel-insday.org The following are snippets of structural failures and design flaws in different countries that carry valuable lessons for Professional Engineers, architects, contractors, Government departments, building owners and the general public. 6 54 ingenieur 2014-July-FA.indd 54 On April 20, 2004, most construction workers of the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT Circle Line tunnel in Nicoll Highway) were having their tea break when the steel supports over the tunnel began to fall over, going down like dominoes into the deep tunnel. The surrounding area followed suit, sagging into the tunnel, and the Nicoll Highway quickly and smoothly caved in ‘like soft sand giving way’, starting with the city-bound carriageway. As Nicoll Highway sank, gas, water and electricity cables snapped, causing power to go out for about 15,000 people and 700 businesses in the Marina and Suntec City area. Tremors were felt at Golden Mile Complex. Tenants and residents in the building were also evacuated. As a result of the collapse, excavation works at all MRT Circle Line sites under the charge of the main contractor were temporarily suspended. The Singapore Government set up a three-man Committee of Inquiry (COI) to probe into the cause of the collapse and present recommendations to prevent a similar tragedy. The final report of the COI into the collapse of Nicoll Highway was submitted on May 11, 2005. The Report laid bare a string of lamentable errors relating to design, construction, monitoring and supervision, regulatory weakness and the lack of defensive systems and emergency planning. The COI also highlighted human and organisational failures which contributed to the collapse. The collapse occurred as a consequence of the failure of a deep excavation adjacent to Nicoll Highw ^K