YANGON—The Myanmar Engineering Society (MES) says it is investigating the partial collapse of the Yangon Nursing University building on Sunday, as the building is just seven years old.
The building in Lanmadaw Township was constructed by Pyi Mahar Construction Co in 2011 under the previous government and was opened by former Union health minister Dr. Pe Thet Khin in September 2013.
The MES has formed a five-member committee to examine the causes of collapse. “We are examining it and will release a report about the cause of the collapse. We will release the report within a week,” said MES President U Aung Myint.
The MES will submit the report to the Yangon regional government and the Ministry of Health and Sports, he said.
The roof and ceiling on the left side of the four-story building collapsed on Sunday around noon. The building’s portico was also damaged by the falling debris.
“We handed the case over to the MES. It will form an investigation team and investigate. They will see how the contractor was selected, how the building was constructed and so on,” said Yangon Regional Minister for Industry, Electricity and Transportation Daw Nilar Kyaw.
The collapse drew widespread criticisms from city residents as buildings in Yangon usually see little damage from weather and the building is just seven years old.
“They should see if it was because of defects in the design or if it was the fault of the contractor. If it is due to defects in the design, the site engineers should have fixed it in the construction process,” secretary of the Myanmar Construction Entrepreneurs Association U Myo Myint told The Irrawaddy.
Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.