case study on forensic investigation of The Hotel New World Collapse

1. The Hotel New World Collapse
(March 15, 1986)
Presented by
PARVATHY SUNIL A
ROLL NO. 4
M.Tech SE
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3. • A six story building located in Singapore, housed multiple
local institutions and establishments such as offices, a branch
bank, and a nightclub
• On March 15, 1986, the Hotel New World collapsed in less
than 60 seconds at approximately 11:30 am
• The result was the entrapmentt of fifty people, seventeen of
whom were eventually rescued, and thirty-three who were
killed
INTRODUCTION
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4. • After the Hotel New World collapsed, building codes and
standards were improved throughout Singapore as well as the
implementation of engineering ethics
INTRODUCTION
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5. • It had thirty six reinforced concrete columns that supported
six concrete floors, totalling a weight of 6,000 tons
• A parking lot was composed of the underground while a bank
branch took up most of the ground floor
• The next floor was a popular nightclub
• The remaining floors were occupied by a budget hotel named
The Hotel New World
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION
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6. • All the mechanical equipment such as water tanks and air
conditioning units, which were used to cool off the building
in the hot climate, resided on the roof. The total height came
to be twenty four meters
• The building experienced no severe impact or structural
damage during its lifetime. In 1975 however, there was a gas
leak in the building that poisoned thirty-five people
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION
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7. March 14th
 At 7pm, the hostess of the nightclub hears a noise and
witnesses a crack in one of the columns while setting up for
the evening
March 15th
 At 10:10 am, another crack was heard which resulted in
falling debris
DAY OF COLLAPSE
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8. At 10:45 am, the receptionist heard a “loud bang” from
somewhere in the building
At 11:10 am, a passerby claimed to have felt an earthquake
and the receptionist heard another loud noise
At 11:21 am, one the workers attending to the cracked
column saw debris falling from the ceiling to the ground
DAY OF COLLAPSE
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9.  At 11:26 am, the whole building started to vibrate and shake
as it was on the verge of collapsing
 In less than one minute, one of the tallest buildings in
Singapore transformed into rubble and dust
DAY OF COLLAPSE
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11. • First, many engineers who examined the rubble and the
speed of the collapse led to the belief that an internal
explosion caused by a bomb or terrorist attack was responsible
for the collapse
• As investigations progressed, no evidence of an explosion
was found
FORENSIC STUDY
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12. • Secondly, Samples were brought into labs for strength and
consistency testing
• The concrete met all of the international safety standards,
concluding that the strength of the material was not the
problem
FORENSIC STUDY
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13. • Third, They examined the land under the building and
realized that it was not an issue and there was no failure in
the foundation
• Then the investigators referred back to the plans and realized
that each failure corresponded to different columns; they
failed because they were stressed to their limit
• This was proven by examining the concrete on the
microscopic level
FORENSIC STUDY
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14. • When the concrete is stressed to the limit, tiny cracks also
known as micro-cracks invisible to the naked eye in the
particles are developed
• Such cracks reduced the weight that is supported by the piers
and initiated a progressive collapse
FORENSIC STUDY
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15. • The investigators found heavy equipment in the rubble that
was not in the original design plans
• During its fifteen years of life span, the owner of the building
had added extra weight
FORENSIC STUDY
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16. FORENSIC STUDY
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17. • However, all this extra weight that was added to the structure
fell under the live load category and was already accounted
for
• Found that the extra weight added to the building is not the
proper reason for failure
FORENSIC STUDY
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18. • Finally, the engineers returned to their blue prints and
calculations and realized that the building’s dead load was
not accounted for in the original design
FORENSIC STUDY
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19. • After heavy examination and study of the collapse, it was
clear that the collapse of the New World Hotel was not
caused by an explosion, nor by improper construction,
material deficiency, swamp land or by the live load added to
the building by the owner
• The building failed because the engineers did not account for
the building’s weight or dead load during the design phase
CONCLUSION
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20. • This monumental mistake meant that the building was on the
verge of collapse ever since it was built
• The building's columns were stressed to their limit since their
construction and the collapse was a matter of time
• Also, the substantial loads added to the building that caused
an overload to the poorly constructed structure contributed
to the collapse, as well as the lack of proper maintenance and
engineering
CONCLUSION
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