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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1976
OVERSEAS EXPERT ARRIVES TO INVESTIGATE SAU MAU PING LANDSLIDE ******
THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, MR. WILLIAM BELL, SAID TODAY THAT THE SECOND OF THE FOUR OVERSEAS EXPERTS TO JOIN THE SAU MAU PING LANDSLIDE INVESTIGATION HAD NOW ARRIVED IN HONG KONG, AND THE REMAINING TWO WERE EXPECTED HERE BY THE END OF THE WEEK.
THE LATEST ARRIVAL IS PROFESSOR NORBERT MORGENSTERN OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA,
MR. BELL SAID PROFESSOR MORGENSTERN HAD COME TO HONG KONG DIRECT FROM A LECTURE TOUR IN ALASKA, WHERE HE WAS ALSO ENGAGED AS A CONSULTANT ON THE HUGE PIPELINE PROJECT TO LINK ALASKA AND THE UNITED STATES.
PROFESSOR MORGENSTERN HAD UNDERTAKEN EXTENSIVE STUDY OF SOIL MECHANICS AT IMPERIAL COLLEGE, LONDON AND WAS A WORLD RECOGNISED EXPERT ON ENGINEERING AND SOIL PROBLEMS.
WORKING WITH A PROFESSOR FROM LONDON, HE HAD DEVELOPED A THEORY AND COMPUTER PROGRAMME FOR ESTIMATING THE STABILITY OF SLOPES UNDER VARIOUS CONDITIONS.
LAST YEAR HE HAD PRESENTED A PAPER ENTITLED +STABILITY OF SLOPES IN RESIDUAL SOILS+ TO THE 5TH PAN AMERICAN CONFERENCE ON SOIL MECHANICS AND FOUNDATION ENGINEERING AT BUENOS AIRES.
PROFESSOR MORGENSTERN WAS MET AT KAI TAK BY SENIOR REPRESENTATIVES OF BINNIES AND PARTNERS, THE P.W.D. CONSULTANTS INVESTIGATING THE SAU MAU PING LANDSLIDE.
MR. BELL SAID THE TWO OTHER OVERSEAS EXPERTS EXPECTED TO ARRIVE IN HONG KONG THIS WEEK TO JOIN THE INVESTIGATION WERE MR. BRIAN RICHARDS, PRINCIPAL RESEARCH SCIENTIST WITH AUSTRALIA'S COMMONWEALTH SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH ORGANISATION= AND PROFESSOR VICTOR DE MELLO OF THE SAN CARLOS SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AT BRAZIL'S SAO PAULO UNIVERSITY.
ALL THE EXPERTS, WOULD, IN THE FIRST INSTANCE, BE BRIEFED AND ASKED FOR THEIR COMMENTS ON THE LINES OF BINNIES' INVESTIGATION INTO THE LANDSLIDE, AND PROPOSED REMEDIAL MEASURES.
AFTER THEIR INITIAL CONSULTATIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS, THE OVERSEAS EXPERTS WOULD PROBABLY LEAVE HONG KONG TO DEAL WITH THE IR OTHER COMMITMENTS, AND THEN RETURN TO HONG KONG TO EVALUATE AND DRAW CONCLUSIONS FROM THE EXHAUSTIVE SERIES OF TESTS BEING UNDERTAKEN ON THE SLOPES.
THE FIRST OF THE OVERSEAS EXPERTS WHO ARRIVED IN HONG KONG, PROFESSOR JOHN KNILL, PROFESSOR OF ENGINEERING GEOLOGY AT
IMPERIAL COLLEGE, LONDON, WHO CAME TO HONG KONG ON SEPTEMBER 9, HAS LEFT TO ATTEND A CONFERENCE IN TEHERAN, AND IS EXPECTED TO RETURN NEXT MONTH.