Praha has part of the inspections of the Blanka tunnel, the opposition criticizes them

Prague - Opposition councilors believe that the analyses by the Amberg company, which evaluated the execution documentation and geotechnical monitoring of the Blanka tunnel complex construction, cannot be independent. According to them, Amberg collaborates with the builder of Blanka, the company Metrostav, on another construction project in Brno. The transport committee of the Prague council discussed the analyses today, and the city council received them on Tuesday. According to the analyses, neither the construction documentation nor its geotechnical monitoring can be blamed for the recent collapse of Blanka.
    According to committee member Jiří Witzany (SNK ED), this represents a conflict of interest. "Amberg is collaborating with Metrostav on the construction of a tunnel in Brno. I cannot consider the assessment as coming from an independent company," commented councilor Petra Kolínská (SZ).
    However, according to Jiří Toman, director of the city investor department, Amberg was not assessing Metrostav's work, but that of the designers. The activities of Metrostav are to be evaluated by the Bung company, which the city commissioned for another review. The analysis by Bung is not yet complete, as the company has requested an extension of the delivery time until around mid-September, according to Toman.
    Witzany also believes that the conclusions of the reviews indicate that the cause of the July collapse of the Blanka tunnel may be an act of God. "Then the client, that is the city, will bear the consequences," Witzany stated. All damages caused, which an expert assessment has so far quantified at about 14 million crowns, could not then be claimed from Metrostav by the city. Metrostav would also have a right to an extension of the construction deadline.
    Toman countered that the mining authority had previously stated that according to its preliminary conclusions, the geological conditions would not be the cause of the collapse, but rather technological indiscipline or a mismatch between the project and operational documentation. Toman also reminded that the city has already sent a letter to Metrostav attempting to claim compensation for damages related to the collapse of Blanka amounting to approximately 5.9 million crowns. "The amount is certainly not final," Toman added.