Thu Thiem tunnel project needs cash

The ongoing Thu Thiem tunnel project in HCM City has been hit by a series of robberies over the past several months, exacting considerable financial losses and threatening the lives of workers.

In June alone, the project suffered 30 attacks by robbers, according to a report released by the project’s contractor, the Obayashi Company of Japan.

In one incident, nearly 40 robbers armed with deadly weapons such as scimitars and knives broke into the project’s construction site, attacked the guards on duty and made off with nearly 2 tonnes of steel.

Another robbery took place on June 2, in which the thieves stole 3.3 tonnes of steel worth close to VND48 million (nearly US$3,000). Four days later, bandits struck again, taking away an additional 400kg of steel valued at VND6 million (US$375).

"The contractor, the Obayashi Company, has increased security forces to protect the project but it is still unable to prevent robbers armed with deadly weapons. These attacks have frightened many workers, engineers and security guards," said Nguyen Do, the project’s chief engineer.

In order to solve the problem, the director of Obayashi company, Kenji Tokuhiro, has called for urgent assistance from the HCM City’s People’s Committee and authorised agencies to help ensure order and security at the construction site and to protect both the lives of workers and the project’s assets.

Deputy chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Tai has asked the HCM City Police to thoroughly investigate the case and deal severely with the offenders.

Construction of the Thu Thiem tunnel, part of the HCM City East-West Highway project, kicked off on February 15. The VND3 trillion (nearly US$187 million) tunnel will link the city centre to District 2, future site of the new Thu Thiem urban centre.

The tunnel will be 1.6km long and 32.5m wide and will have six lanes and two emergency lanes.