Work on an extra level has been suspended at the two-storey Catanduanes People’s Center under constructed at the Catanduanes State University campus allegedly due to a possible structural flaw.
According to a number of sources who requested anonymity, the initial phase of the project involved the construction of a two-storey reinforced concrete building funded in the amount of P44 million.
This year, the same project has been given two separate allocations of P30 million each for Phase I and Phase II under the General Appropriations Act.
It is claimed that the additional funding is for the construction of a third level, that of a high-ceiling assembly hall at the third floor that will in effect make the edifice equivalent to a four-storey building.
The problem is that the installed main rebars for the columns of the two-storey portion were not long enough to satisfy the provision of the National Structural Code of the Philippines (NSCP) regarding lap splices.
A lap splice is created when two pieces of rebar are overlapped to create a continuous line of rebar.
The NSCP provision requires that such lap splices are permitted only within the center half of the member length, or in this case, the height of the column between the beams.
An inspection of the building, particularly the column rebars for the additional level shows that the main rebars from the first two floors extended only by about 40 centimeters above the beam, which would not reach the center half of the columns for the proposed new floor.
The Tribune verified from the Office of the Acting Building Official that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which implements the project, has submitted an application for Building Permit for the building under construction but the plans attached were for a two-storey building.
A construction industry veteran said the failure to comply with the lap splice requirement could result in column failure in the building during earthquakes and endanger occupants and the public.
It is the second infra project of the DPWH regional office within the CatSU campus that has come under scrutiny for possible violations of laws, rules and regulations.
Recently, construction of the second phase of the multi-purpose building at the former rice field near the Virac airport was suspended after it was found out that it would be built some 100 meters away from the initial phase.
The design change would also leave the first phase uncompleted and without a roof.