On the morning of May 26, water leakage occurred in the Tu Zhu Tunnel in Chongqing, China, resembling a curtain of water, and the relevant section has been placed under control. The tunnel officially opened to traffic on September 29, 2021, less than three years ago. This news made it to the top search rankings on Baidu on May 27.
Many Chinese netizens shared videos on the 26th showing water seepage inside the Tu Zhu Tunnel, resembling a curtain of water. A section of the tunnel’s roof experienced a collapse, revealing two cracks from which a significant amount of water mixed with soil squirted out. The road surface had accumulated water, with traffic warning cones set up nearby and traffic control implemented inside the tunnel.
Officials stated that experts are on-site assessing the situation, which is rather complex. Currently, they have not received any reports of injuries, and specific information will be released to the public by the publicity department.
According to the information provided, the Tu Zhu Tunnel was led by the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, constructed by China Construction Fifth Bureau and China Construction Tunnel Investment and Construction. It was designed as a one-way three-lane tunnel with a design speed of 80 km/h, connecting the Chongqing International Logistics Hub Park, the starting point of the China-Europe Express (Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe), to the west and Liangjiang River Bridge and Jinyu Avenue to the east. It serves as an important passage for external traffic in the Liangjiang New Area. The tunnel officially opened on September 29, 2021.
Some netizens revealed: “The tunnel has been dripping water for a long time. I’ve seen it several times while driving through. I always wondered if water leakage in the tunnel would pose a problem? I never expected it to worsen over time.”
Others expressed concerns: “There have been multiple instances of water leakage since opening. Is there a risk of collapse?”
One netizen pointed out: “It’s not just the tunnel. Every time it rains, half of the underground light rail stations leak, and they have to use plastic buckets to collect the water. The supervision of Chongqing’s infrastructure construction is quite slack.”
Many netizens discussed the seriousness of such significant water seepage occurring less than three years after the tunnel opened. Could the initial construction quality have been truly safe and up to standard? Some questioned whether the tunnel was a “substandard” project.
Netizen “Yuan DafB” stated: “This is definitely a construction quality issue!”
“6 Xin Life” believes: “Modern technology can easily scan for issues. If confirmed, the relevant responsible parties should be held seriously accountable!”