RFA
16 May 2019, 02:12 GMT+10
Poor construction methods, with soil used in place of concrete, are now being blamed for a fatal hydropower dam collapse last year in Laos in what has been called the country's worst flooding in decades.
The disaster occurred on July 23, 2018 when a saddle dam at the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy (PNPC) hydropower project collapsed following heavy rains, inundating 12 villages and killing at least 40 people in Champassak and Attapeu provinces, leaving many more missing.
A report sent to the Lao government in March, but still not released to the public, reveals that "construction of the saddle dam was substandard," a PNPC official told RFA's Lao Service this week.
"It was built with soil," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "That was the cause of the collapse. It couldn't handle that massive amount of water."
A new saddle dam, saddle dam D, is now under construction at a location a little more than a kilometer away from the dam that failed, the official said, adding that the new 400-meter-long structure will be built with concrete and anchored at a depth of at least 10 meters into the ground.
The team investigating the cause of the July 2018 disaster has recommended that all other saddle dams at the hydropower site also be built with concrete, he said.
Talks with South Korea
Also speaking to RFA, Singphet Bounsavattiphanh-vice chairman of the Lao government inspection agency-confirmed that the government had received the report and its recommendations in March.
"But they cannot publish it right now because they are in the process of negotiating with the South Korean government about what information should or should not be released to the public," he said.
PNPC is a consortium formed by a local Lao company and South Korea's SK Engineering & Construction, and Korean involvement in the project had earlier prompted Seoul to send relief teams to Laos to help mitigate the effects of the disaster.
The Lao government is expected to officially publish the investigation's results when talks with South Korea are concluded, Singphet said.
All findings of the report should be released as quickly as possible, though, Premredee Daohuang of the Thailand-based NGO Laos Dam Investigation Monitor said, also speaking to RFA.
"This is so the public can verify the information and raise questions," he said, adding, "This information shouldn't be known only to the Lao and South Korean governments."
In the wake of the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy disaster, Laos has stepped up scrutiny of an ambitious hydropower dam building program under which it aims to serve as the "battery of Asia" and sell hydropower to its more industrialized neighbors China, Thailand and others.
Reported and translated by Max Avary for RFA's Lao Service. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Copyright © 1998-2018, RFA. Published with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036
Get a daily dose of Pakistan Telegraph news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Pakistan Telegraph.
More InformationWASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump claimed he was unaware that the term shylock is regarded as antisemitic when he used it in...
PARIS, France: A strike by French air traffic controllers demanding improved working conditions caused significant disruptions during...
OMAHA, Nebraska: With Congress considering cuts totaling around US$1 trillion to Medicaid over the next decade, concerns are rising...
ROME, Italy: Quick thinking by emergency responders helped prevent greater devastation after a gas station explosion in southeastern...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump is drawing praise from his core supporters after halting key arms shipments to Ukraine, a...
MOSCOW, Russia: This week, Russia became the first country to officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan since...
HONG KONG: China has fired back at the European Union in an escalating trade dispute by imposing new restrictions on medical device...
NEW YORK, New York - Monday's trading session saw mixed performances across U.S. and global markets, with several major indices posting...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The U.S. government has granted GE Aerospace permission to resume jet engine shipments to China's COMAC, a person...
DUBAI, U.A.E.: Saudi Aramco is exploring asset sales as part of a broader push to unlock capital, with gas-fired power plants among...
MILAN, Italy: Italian regulators have flagged four non-EU countries—including Russia—as carrying systemic financial risk for domestic...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: With just weeks to spare before a potential government default, U.S. lawmakers passed a sweeping tax and spending...