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Expert team did not meet to discuss Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge safety fears

Legislators use special meeting to cast doubt on government assurances that artificial island safely protected, after worries concrete protection was drifting into sea

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***ONE TIME USE ONLY, PLEASE CLEAR THE COPYRIGHTS BEFORE RE-USE - OTUO*** An aerial photo of the artificial island which the Highways Department claimed was taken on August 14, 2017, days before Super Typhoon Hato hit the region. Image released by Highways Department shows the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Main Bridge artificial island which is still under constructions. SCMP Pictures (UNDATED HANDOUT)

The expert team advising on construction of the bridge linking Hong Kong to Zhuhai and Macau never even met to discuss recent worries that an artificial island integral to the bridge’s structure could collapse for lack of protection from the sea.

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Director of Highways Daniel Chung Kum-wah made that revelation during a special Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting on Wednesday. There, lawmakers cast doubt on government assurances that breakwaters protecting the island were structurally sound.

Concerns surfaced earlier this month after aerial photos appeared to show that interlocking concrete blocks, known as dolosse, placed around the edges of the artificial island had drifted away. The island connects the Hong Kong bridge section to a tunnel in mainland waters.

The apparent movement raised fears that the undersea tunnel could collapse because of insufficient protection.

Mainland China’s Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Authority, which is managing the multibillion-dollar project, has since issued two statements to dismiss safety concerns.

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Some people worried that the dolosse around the artificial island was drifting away. Photo: SCMP Pictures
Some people worried that the dolosse around the artificial island was drifting away. Photo: SCMP Pictures

The city’s top officials also tried to allay public fears. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor called the island’s stability “scientifically proven”. And, after a visit to the island, Chung concluded the positioning of the dolosse was “scientific, reasonable and safe”.

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