MTR In The Dark About How Many Forms Lost: Expert

An independent structural engineering expert, who assisted the ongoing commission of inquiry into shoddy building work at the MTRC's Shatin-Central Link, said on Monday that he suspects the railway officials are completely in the dark about how many of the documents are missing.

Albert Yeung from the University of Hong Kong said the Request for Inspection and Survey Checks (RISC) forms which the railway officials admitted have gone missing, have five colour-coded copies and a copy in the computer system.

"So now even the computer system [copy] can not be found. So it is kind of very strange now all these five hard copies and the electronic copy, all have disappeared," said Yeung.

On Friday MTR officials disclosed that the proportion of missing documents was higher than the 40 percent they had reported just a few days prior to that. But Yeung said it should be easy and quick to find out which of the forms are missing.

He said the forms are in consecutively numbered and if some are missing it is easy to find out which numbers from which dates are missing and who signed on it by looking at the site diary.

The expert also told RTHK's Janice Wong that the Shatin to Central link scandal has tarnished the image of the whole engineering profession in Hong Kong.