The Central Facility Accident Investigation Committee for the Osan reinforced earth retaining wall collapse said on the 19th that it will extend the investigation period by two months to carry out cause investigation and analysis related to the reinforced earth retaining wall collapse in Osan, Gyeonggi, that occurred on July 16.
Since the kickoff meeting on July 21, the committee has worked to identify the cause of the accident through on-site and geotechnical investigations (17 times), reviews of design documents and other materials, plenary meetings (13 times), hearings of related parties (3 times), and verification of collapse scenarios by specialty. However, it noted that because a significant amount of time has passed since design completion in 2006 and construction completion in 2011, securing related materials such as design drawings, specifications, and quality documents from those involved in the accident has been delayed. Accordingly, it plans to extend the investigation period, which was until the 20th, from the existing five months to seven months, until Feb. 20 next year.
Going forward, the committee plans to carry out additional securing of design documents, hearings of related parties, detailed analysis of collapse scenarios, preparation of an accident investigation report, and the establishment of measures to prevent recurrence, in order to clearly identify in detail the direct cause of the collapse and the problems at each stage of design, construction, supervision, and maintenance.
Committee Chairperson Kwon O-gyun said, "We are keeping all possibilities open regarding the cause of the accident and are closely examining even minor matters from multiple angles," and added, "By comprehensively reviewing design document reviews, geotechnical investigations, and various structural analyses and verification results, we will objectively identify the cause of the accident and establish measures to prevent a recurrence."