A 20 metre section of Jomtien Beach Road
collapsed in front of Somprasong shopping plaza. AGAIN!
Due to heavy rains and shoddy workmanship, part of
the new four lane Jomtien Beach Road in front of Somprasong shopping
plaza has collapsed, again. Almost exactly one year ago to the day, the
same section of road fell victim to the same fate.
Residents and business people on the northern side must now detour
through Sukhumvit Road on Soi Wat Boon Kanjanaram. Those on the southern
side must detour through Soi Chaiyapruek. Both theses routes are full of
their own problems. Each route is pitted with enough moguls to destroy
the suspension of all auto’s travelling through them.
A large part of the steel enforced concrete surface of the 4 lane Beach
Road sank into the ground. About 20 metres of the road has been
affected.
A large water main was also broken, depriving hundreds of homes of
water. This was caused by the breaking of a joint in a leaking drainage
pipe. Water then rushed out of the break and caused the sand under the
supports to flow away and leave a huge hole into which the road sank.
Another side effect of this incident is that huge amounts of waste water
now flow into the bay, causing sea water to become filthy and black. The
area is now considered unsuitable for use by tourists and may pollute
other parts of the bay.
The Pattaya Water Commission, Telephone and Electricity Authorities have
sent officials to begin work. They have estimated that, due to a large
100 metre crack in the road surface, new repairs may take up to a year
to finish, just in time for the next rainy season disaster. They have
also stated that nature will play a large role in how quickly repairs
are completed, and hope the situation will improve with the upcoming end
of the rainy season.
