With a death toll that may exceed 100, the unfortunate collapse of the 17-story Weiguan Jinlong (Golden Dragon) apartment complex in Tainan this past Saturday has caused some major confusion. As the BBC reports, the 200-unit building, built in 1983 by a construction company that has since gone out of business, crumbled after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake while surrounding buildings remained unscathed. Though some are suspicious of the use of empty oil cans as fillers in the concrete pillars, structural engineers do not believe that to be the cause. The building is under investigation for "shoddy construction." Its developer (Lin Ming-hui) has been detained on charges of negligence leading to death.
Empty Oil Cans May Not Be the Reason for Tainan Building Collapse
About this author