SINGAPORE: The affected sections of Tanjong Katong Road South will reopen in stages from Saturday (Aug 2), the Land Transport Authority and PUB said in a joint statement on Friday, a week after the formation of a sinkhole forced its closure.
Tanjong Katong Road South, from East Coast Parkway (ECP) to Mountbatten Road, will open to traffic on Saturday at noon, while the opposite direction from Mountbatten Road to ECP will open on Monday from 5am, the agencies added.
“The Land Transport Authority and PUB have completed repair works and safety assessment of the affected road sections along Tanjong Katong Road South, as well as the surrounding roads,” the statement read.
“These checks, conducted in consultation with the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), have confirmed that the roads are safe for use.”
The site where the sinkhole opened up along Tanjong Katong Road South is adjacent to an active PUB worksite involving the construction of a 16m-deep shaft to connect three existing sewer lines.
A concrete component in the shaft “failed” at around 5.50pm last Saturday, according to the national water agency. Around the same time, a sinkhole formed on the adjacent road, causing a car to fall in.
Seven migrant workers were involved in the rescue of the female driver, and their bravery has since drawn widespread praise.
LTA and PUB said that government agencies have, over the past week, worked to stabilise the ground by backfilling the sinkhole with liquefied stabilised soil.
This is a mixture of soil, water and cement which is commonly used to fill up voids underground.
“Following this, a series of rigorous tests were conducted to assess the ground condition and confirm that it was safe for reopening,” they added.
“These include probing to check for voids and weak ground, ground penetrating radar surveys to detect subsurface abnormalities and seismic surveys to map the density and stability of underground layers.
“Based on these scans, no anomalies or cavities were detected within the area.”
