BANGKOK, 16 August 2012 – The Culture Ministry’s inspection of the damage at Wat Arun in Bangkok, induced by continued heavy rain, found that the restoration cost could be in the tens of millions of baht.
Culture Minister Sukumol Kunplome, on Wednesday, inspected the damaged stupa of Wat Arun, which was caused by the recent, continued heavy rain.
Mrs. Sukumol has instructed the Department of Fine Arts to conduct a thorough check on every structure of the famed temple since some damage was reported last year. A restoration project was earlier set to take place in 2014.
However, the latest damage led the Culture Minister to order the work to begin by the end of August, with an initial budget of more than 500,000 baht.
Another round of full inspection at the temple to pave way for a major renovation, expected to cost no less than 80 million baht, is set to take place after the initial repair work is completed.
The Culture Minister said that parts of the stupa will be covered while the restoration is in progress in order to keep tourists away from possible injuries.
She added that a system will be installed on the temple’s ground to measure any tremor activity, which may hit the surrounding area.
