The recent collapse of the Seosomun overpass has prompted South Korea's largest civil engineering organization to declare that the incident reflects a systemic failure rather than mere negligence at the site. As investigations into the cause of the accident continue, concerns are being raised about the deficiencies in the cost and oversight systems for demolishing aging infrastructure.
On May 28, the Korean Society of Civil Engineers issued a statement identifying three major gaps in the country's demolition construction system as contributing factors to the incident. They noted the absence of mandatory pre-demolition design, insufficient reflection of demolition costs in standard cost estimates, and a lack of specialized oversight systems and qualification criteria.
The society emphasized that financial considerations are at the core of the issue. They pointed out that costs for structural analysis, temporary support structures, and monitoring are not included in standard cost estimates, leading to lower bidding prices. This, in turn, can result in safety procedures being either inadequately implemented or overlooked altogether.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's standard cost estimates for construction projects, there are few specific items for estimating the demolition of civil structures like bridges. The existing guidelines primarily address the demolition of small concrete structures and the installation and dismantling of temporary scaffolding. There is a lack of clear criteria for assessing the changing loads during the phased demolition of a bridge, installing temporary supports, and monitoring deflections as part of the safety process.
While standard cost estimates define the input quantities for unit tasks, the absence of standards for the demolition process itself makes it difficult to incorporate related costs into bidding prices. The quantity of materials being demolished is accounted for, but the costs associated with safe design and oversight are not.
Internationally, there are movements to treat demolition work as a distinct engineering discipline. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) published a dedicated technical guideline for bridge demolition, titled 'MOP 157,' in 2024. This aims to reduce inconsistencies in demolition analysis criteria across different regions and companies.
The risks associated with demolition work are evident in statistics. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, there have been 1,141 accidents related to demolition and dismantling work over the past five years, with the fatality rate for demolition work being twice that of the overall construction industry. Concerns are growing as the number of aging bridges and overpasses increases.
However, some experts caution against attributing the incident solely to systemic deficiencies. They argue that the more significant issue may be the failure to adhere to established principles on-site. The Seoul city guidelines stipulate that temporary supports should be installed as needed to prevent deformation or subsidence of the structures being demolished. Whether adequate reinforcement measures were in place at the accident site will be a key point of investigation.
To prevent future incidents, the society has proposed several measures, including: mandatory pre-demolition design services for civil structures, establishing appropriate cost standards for high-risk demolition projects, creating qualifications for specialized demolition oversight, prioritizing remote inspections when signs of collapse are detected, and establishing protections and compensation systems for private experts involved in public safety inspections. The proposals for prioritizing remote inspections and expert protections are particularly relevant in light of this recent accident.
Han Seung-hun, president of the Korean Society of Civil Engineers and a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Yonsei University, stated, "If the system does not keep pace with the field, tragedies like this can happen again at any time. We need a comprehensive overhaul of the safety management system for aging bridges nationwide."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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