THE vital steel reinforcement rods within the main concrete structures of most buildings in Xinle Garden and Haile Garden housing estates in Bao’an District are dangerously corroded and the volume of steel used to support the floors was inadequate, an inspection report says.

    The report, compiled by Shenzhen Institute of Building Research Co. Ltd., reveals that 16 apartment buildings of the two housing estates’ 29 buildings were rated as dangerous, Grade D level, which means immediate action must be taken to repair or demolish the buildings, as the structures are unsafe. Eleven buildings were rated at Grade C, meaning the structures have been compromised, affecting the structures’ capacity to bear weight. Only two buildings were rated at a lesser level of danger.

    More than 1,000 residents reside within the at-risk buildings, built 20 years ago as government-subsidized housing for civil servants.

    “The contractor was suspected of having done shoddy work and using inferior materials. The steel reinforcing bars were eroded because sea sand was used in the construction,” said Ren Jun, chief engineer with Shenzhen Institute of Building Research Co. Ltd.

    But he added: “The buildings have problems, but not to the level where residents should be evacuated.”

    Bao’an’s construction bureau is working on a plan to repair or demolish the housing estates. Bao’an District Government said it also commissioned the construction bureau to solicit bids for possible repair of the buildings. The housing authority has strengthened safety checks of the buildings and measures would instantly be taken if anything abnormal occurs, it said.

    Some residents are not so at ease, however. “We can’t wait for the urban renovation projects. The important thing is evacuating the buildings,” a resident said.

    The buildings were developed by the State-owned enterprise, Bao’an Construction Engineering Co. Ltd., and supervised by Bao’an Engineering Projects Quality Supervision and Inspection Station. It is assumed the buildings were constructed using sea sand and built on land reclaimed from the sea. Two of the buildings ran into quality problems in 1997, just two years after they were first occupied.  (Han Ximin)