ILOILO City — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) central office has received the result of the geotechnical investigation on the defective P680-million Ungka flyover conducted by a third-party consulting firm.
Mayor Jerry P. Treñas yesterday said DPWH-6 assistant director Al Fruto confirmed this to him through a phone call.
The results of the probe conducted by Metro Manila-based Abinales Associates Engineers + Consultants also included that of Aganan flyover. It was submitted directly to DPWH secretary Manuel Bonoan.
The third-party consulting firm started its investigation on March 3 and committed to submit the results and recommendation by end of March. However, it failed to beat it.
Treñas earlier said he would wait for the result of the geotechnical investigation and would take it up with the DPWH after Holy Week break.
The city mayor is the chairman of the Infrastructure Development Committee of the Regional Development Council in Western Visayas.
It was unclear, however, when the DPWH central officially will release the results of the probe to the public.
Geotechnical investigation, according to trenchlesspedia.com, implies the use of different methods to determine the physical properties of soil and rock below the surface of the earth at a proposed installation site. It helps engineers make decisions regarding the types of tools that will be required to dig through the site most economically. It also assesses the potential environmental impact that a project may have on a particular area.
Geotechnical investigation is an essential step in any trenchless operation because knowledge of subsurface conditions is key to a successful project.
It focused on determining the cause of the vertical displacement of settlement in piers 4, 5 and 6 (if counting the posts from Christ the King Memorial Park) and formulating the appropriate intervention for the defect./PN
