Business

Towering worry: Small holes cause big jitters

By Youkyung Lee
Published July 25, 2014 8:27am ET
Add Washington Examiner on Google
Towering worry: Small holes cause big jitters
In this July 8, 2014, residents play Chinese chess with the Lotte World Tower, center, under construction in the background near Seokchon Lake in Seoul, South Korea. Plans for the super-high tower first surfaced in 1995 and it took another 15 years to get a green light after the Air Force objected to it as a risk to a nearby military airport used for VIP flights. Now it faces new doubts as South Korea reels from the Sewol ferry sinking in April that killed hundreds of teenagers. The disaster provoked a scathing reassessment of an ethos of economic progress first, safety last that was largely unquestioned over several decades as the country rapidly industrialized. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) | Ahn Young-joon

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — For the developers of the world’s sixth tallest building near Seoul, a mysteriously shrinking lake and the appearance of small sinkholes in residential neighborhoods couldn’t have come at a more inopportune time.

Plans for the super-high tower first surfaced in 1995 and it took another 15 years to get a green light after the Air Force objected to it as a risk to a nearby military airport used for VIP flights.

Print subscriber? Click here to login/register your account
Digital subscriber? Click here to login/register your account.

Trusted reporting.Unlimited access.

Subscribe for full access to Washington Examiner coverage, expert political analysis, and subscriber-only journalism.

Get Unlimited Access

Already a member? Log in

Cancel anytime.

Tag:

Asia South Korea