Land Ministry, Incheon launch joint probe into Songdo apartment balcony collapse

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Incheon city government are launching a joint investigation into the cause of a protruding balcony collapse at an apartment complex in Incheon's Songdo International City on Aug. 7.

Incheon city announced Thursday that it would form a joint facility accident investigation committee with the ministry and conduct a detailed probe into the cause of the accident over roughly three months beginning Friday.

The committee was officially constituted Wednesday and includes 10 experts in structural engineering, construction and law. Hong Geon-ho, a professor of structural engineering at Hoseo University and president of the Korea Concrete Institute, will serve as chair.

The investigation is scheduled to run from Friday through Nov. 20, though the period may be extended if additional verification is needed or more time is required to determine the cause.

The committee will begin with a kickoff meeting Thursday before moving into on-site inspections and detailed structural analysis of the collapsed structure.

The probe will go beyond examining structural conditions at the time of the collapse. Investigators will review the entire project process — including design, construction, supervision and permitting — for any irregularities.

The committee is expected to verify the structural safety of the protruding balcony, check whether the actual construction matched the design documents, assess the adequacy of the construction process, and examine how supervision duties and permitting procedures were carried out.

Because the ministry and Incheon city formed the committee jointly, the investigation is expected to focus on ensuring objectivity and credibility in its findings.

Should the probe identify those responsible, improvements to relevant regulations and to construction and supervision practices are expected to follow.

Incheon city also plans to use the findings to develop safety management measures for similar protruding structures, given the significant anxiety the incident has caused among residents.

Lee Won-ju, director of Incheon city's urban planning bureau, said the city takes seriously the anxiety and concern residents have experienced following the balcony collapse. "We will conduct every step of the investigation objectively and thoroughly to identify the exact cause of the accident," he said, adding that the city would draw up effective safety measures for similar protruding structures based on the results.