Mysterious Holes Appear in Seoul, Construction of Sixth Tallest Tower May be the Cause

By Steven Hogg - 04 Aug '14 08:36AM

The sixth tallest building in the world, coming up in Seoul, South Korea, is being blamed for the appearance of mysterious sinkholes in the neighborhood and the unexplained sinking of water level in a nearby lake.

Residents of the Songpa neighborhoods near the building noticed the appearance of these holes the last two months and the news quickly flashed on the social media. A latest sinkhole in the area is one meter wide and one meter deep according to the Korea Times.

The residents were quick to blame the construction site for the sinkholes and the falling water levels in the lake the tower overlooks, from a depth of 5 meters to 4.3 meters.

"We do not know the cause yet, " an officer from the Yeongdeungpo Police Station, where two sinkholes have been found, told The Korea Times. "In cooperation with Seoul Metro and Seoul Metropolitan Government, we investigated the problem and only found that the holes have nothing to do with sewerage."

Lotte Moolsan, the construction company is building the 123-story tower of which almost 70 are completed. It took the company 15 years to get clearance to start the construction as the government was reluctant because of a nearby airforce airport, reports the Associated Press.

Lee Won-woo, CEO of Lotte Moolsan, said that earlier this month Lotte had pumped water into the lake to maintain the water level. The company has called in experts from Britain to inspect the cause and investigate.

The city authorities have denied further approval for plans to construct a shopping mall alongside the tower till the issue is resolved. An advisory team of lawyers, engineers, architects has been formed to look in to the development and its implications.

The Lotte Group has retail, hotels , chemicals and food under its banner . The 555 meter (1,821 feet) Lotte World Tower costing $3.5 billion, would be the world's sixth-tallest structure beating One World Trade Center by just 10 meters, if it is completed by 2016.