Builder 'sorry' after crane winching truck from Tainan sinkhole topples over

Taipei, March 7 (CNA) A Tainan construction company said Thursday it was "deeply sorry" after a crane attempting to winch a truck out of a sinkhole at one of its building sites in the city's West District toppled over and struck a police car.

In a statement, Huang Long Construction Co. said it would take full responsibility for the accident and had contracted engineers to investigate how it had happened.

The company said it had also halted work at all of its construction sites pending inspections, and was planning to meet with area residents to provide any necessary assistance.

Huang Long takes full responsibility for handling the aftermath of the accident, it added.

The series of accidents began around 5 p.m. Wednesday when a sinkhole opened up next to a Huang Long building site near the intersection of Wufei Street and Ximen Road, swallowing a small truck.

Police quickly cordoned off the area, while workers attempted to use a crane to lift the truck out of the hole.

At around 7 p.m., however, a weak foundation on the ground where the crane was operating gave way, causing the crane's boom to fall onto Ximen Road, where it smashed into a police car and a traffic light.

No one was injured by the sinkhole or the crane collapse.

Early Thursday, engineers from the Tainan City Civil Engineers Association inspected residential buildings near the building site and concluded that they did not need to be evacuated.

The association said it would take measurements every three hours for 24 hours to ensure the buildings were not tilting over, during which time grouting will be pumped into the sinkhole to stabilize the ground.

The Tainan City government, meanwhile, said it had issued the company a NT$270,000 (US$8,554) fine and would require it to submit an improvement plan and undergo further inspections before construction can resume.

Based on a preliminary assessment, the sinkhole was likely caused by problems with a diaphragm wall, which are still being investigated, the city government said.

A diaphragm wall, or slurry wall, is a type of reinforced concrete wall often used during deep underground excavation at worksites with many other existing structures nearby.

Last month, an apartment building in New Taipei's Sanchong District tilted over and had to be temporarily evacuated after workers at an adjacent building site drilled through a diaphragm wall, causing groundwater to rush in from under the apartment.