Construction flaws may have caused beam collapse in Sri Desa Entrepreneurs Park, says DBKL

KUALA LUMPUR: The beam collapse at Block A of the Sri Desa Entrepreneurs Park on Tuesday (Aug 15) where 10 vehicles were destroyed may have had some construction flaws.

Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) Building Control Department director Norizan Sulaiman said that preliminary investigations showed possible construction flaws but this could only be determined after a thorough investigation by the Malaysian Institute of Public Works (Ikram).

“I cannot say for sure because we don’t want to speculate. There may be some issues with the building’s integrity.

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“At the outset, the building design looks okay, but who knows during the construction they may have poor suspension design, and the extra loading, like air-cond compressors, would have contributed to the (beam) collapsing," Norizan said.

Norizan said that she would rather wait for Ikram to submit their report and the building’s management corporation (MC) has been instructed to hire a consultant to also submit a Civil and Structural investigation report.

Norizan who had gone this morning to inspect the site said that for public safety, the affected area will be cordoned off, and the 4th floor will be off-limits for now.

“The back entrance is also sealed off. Tenants and office workers on the first and second floor can only go in and remove important documents and have to work elsewhere for the time being," she said.

On Tuesday night, a portion of the commercial building in Kuchai Lama collapsed, crushing 10 vehicles parked on the street below.