The contractor for the Gwangju representative library development project, where a collapse occurred on the 11th, is Gu-il General Construction. Gu-il General Construction was said to have taken on sole construction after another construction company jointly building the project entered corporations rehabilitation proceedings.
According to the Gwangju Fire Department, at about 1:58 p.m. that day, a report was received that a steel structure had collapsed on the second-floor rooftop of the Gwangju representative library construction site in Chipyeong-dong, Seo-gu, Gwangju. Four people were buried under the structure in the accident and one person was reported dead
This business site is where Gwangju City decided to close the Sangmu incineration plant in 2016 and create a complex cultural community town. Here, the construction of the representative library and the cultural-space regeneration of the incineration plant facilities were pushed forward in stages.
The representative library where the accident occurred this time is a project on the former Sangmu incineration plant site with a total project cost of 51.6 billion won, consisting of two underground floors and two above-ground floors with a total floor area of 11,000 cubic meters. Work began in Sep. 2022.
Construction management is handled by Dongil Architecture and MID Engineering.
The construction was initially jointly undertaken by Hongjin Construction and Gu-il General Construction. However, in Jun. this year, the project was completely halted when Youngmu Construction, the parent corporations of Hongjin Construction among the contractors, entered corporations rehabilitation proceedings. Afterward, Gu-il General Construction acquired Hongjin Construction's equity, and work resumed in Sep.
The library had proceeded with construction aiming for completion in the first half of next year and opening in the second half, but delays appear unavoidable due to this accident.