Construction Company and Staff Charged Over Sinkhole in Tanjong Katong

A construction company, its director, and some employees were charged on June 11 over a sinkhole in Tanjong Katong.

The company faces eight charges, mostly under the Building Control Act and Workplace Safety and Health Act.

The director and six others were also charged in relation to the case.

A car fell into the sinkhole on July 26, 2025, but the driver was rescued by workers from a nearby site.

The sinkhole was near a PUB worksite where a 16m-deep shaft was being built to connect sewer lines.

PUB and Surbana Jurong Consultants received conditional warnings under the Building Control Act.

Ohin Construction was hired as a specialist builder for ground support and stabilisation works.

The company is accused of doing unauthorised building works and failing to notify authorities of a road depression.

Ohin is also alleged to have failed to do mandatory tests and notify authorities of the road depression.

Authorities alleged that there were false declarations over the appointment of a site supervisor.

The construction works involved soil strengthening using jet grout piles and reinforced concrete caisson rings.

Jet grout piles are columns of solidified soil and cement formed by injecting cement grout into the earth.

A caisson ring provides structural support for deep excavations and is installed as excavation deepens.

The company is accused of failing to ensure works were done according to approved structural plans.

It allegedly built jet grout piles with smaller diameters and failed to do required tests.

The firm created openings in a caisson ring and did horizontal grouting works without approval.

One caisson ring was cast in a non-circular shape instead of a circular one.

The company failed to notify the Commissioner of Building Control about a road depression on July 15, 2025.

The company is accused of failing to ensure employee safety and health, including risk assessment and safe work procedures.

Ohin Construction is also accused of failing to ensure a video surveillance system was working properly.

Part of the shaft under construction failed on July 26, 2025, leading to soil going into the shaft.

At the same time, the sinkhole formed at Tanjong Katong Road South.

Six others were charged, including the managing director, project director, and resident engineer.

The managing director was handed six charges, the most among the accused.

A representative for Ohin Construction said the company is under provisional liquidation.

The cases were adjourned to July.

PUB said it takes the matter seriously and work on the project remains halted.

For work to resume, new project parties must submit new structural plans for safety assessments and approval.

Surbana Jurong said it takes the conditional warning from BCA seriously and is improving procedures.

Surbana Jurong is working with PUB to deliver the project safely and uphold high safety standards.

After the incident, the affected road was closed for a week to stabilise the ground.

The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment convened an internal panel to investigate the cause of the sinkhole.

BCA, MOM, and LTA completed their investigations into the sinkhole incident.

BCA, MOM, and LTA take a serious view of safety or compliance breaches that place the public at risk.

PUB terminated its contract with Ohin for the project and blacklisted the company for 18 months.

PUB will not award Ohin any new projects during the blacklist period.

The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment convened an internal investigation panel to examine the causes of the incident.

The panel recommended that PUB strengthen its processes for identifying and responding to irregularities in projects.

The panel also recommended that PUB reinforce the roles and responsibilities of parties involved in construction projects.

PUB has implemented the recommendations to prevent similar incidents.

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