Myanmar-Bangkok earthquake: Thailand announces investigation into building collapse

Investigation into Bangkok skyscraper collapse reveals irregularities, anti-corruption watchdog says, with 11 dead and many missing.

An anti-corruption watchdog had flagged irregularities in the construction of a Bangkok skyscraper that collapsed in an earthquake last week and killed at least 11 people, the head of the monitoring group told Reuters.

The government had threatened to cancel the project earlier this year because of delays, Mana Nimitmongkol, president of the Anti-Corruption Organisation of Thailand, said on Sunday (March 30, 2025).

The government has announced an investigation into the cause of the collapse of the tower, which was being built by a Chinese company and a long-established Thai construction firm.

Rescuers were still desperately searching on Monday for 76 more people feared trapped under the rubble of the unfinished 30-storey tower for Thailand's State Audit Office.

The unfinished tower was the only Bangkok building that completely crumbled when a 7.7 magnitude quake struck central Myanmar on Friday and rattled neighbouring countries.

Construction of the building, which began in 2020, is being carried out by a joint venture between Italian Thai Development PCL and a local subsidiary of China's state-owned China Railway Group, the China Railway Number 10 (Thailand) Ltd.

Italian Thai Development and China Railway Group did not immediately comment when contacted by Reuters.