By Annabelle Tukia
The Earthquake Royal Commission has been told the CTV building in Christchurch should never have been re-occupied after the September quake.
The comment came from structural engineer Professor John Mander, who was called to give evidence by lawyers acting for the building's designer, Alan Raey.
Mr Mander flew in from Texas and wasted no time picking holes in the Department of Building and Housing's (DBH) report that says concrete columns failed in the CTV building during the February quake.
“A casual observer could have come up with this from the sidewalk,” he said. “This conclusion is so vague its neither helpful or insightful.”
He then said that the building should never have been reoccupied after the September 7.1 earthquake, after workers claimed it bounced and moved about in the following aftershocks.
“The CTV building must have observed hidden damage [and] should have been red-stickered,” said Mr Mander.
A DBH report found serious flaws in its design and construction that caused it to collapse and kill 115 people in the February quake, but Mr Mander says the report overlooked the effect aftershocks had on the building, including 15 quakes over a magnitude of 5.
Mr Mander is expected to come under fire when he is cross-examined by lawyers for the DBH.
3 News