Engineers drop CTV Building probe
The professional engineering body's probe into the man who oversaw the design of Christchurch's deadly CTV Building has been abandoned after he quit the organisation.
Alan Reay resigned from the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand in February and after taking legal advice, IPENZ says it can't continue to investigate his work.
IPENZ could only take disciplinary action against its members.
"The complainants have been informed of this," chief executive Andrew Cleland said in a statement on Tuesday.
Dr Reay remains a chartered professional engineer and an international professional engineer.
He owned the engineering firm which designed the CTV Building.
In a statement, Dr Reay said his resignation came after he lost faith and trust in the professional body.
"I was (and am) confident that my conduct at all times complied with my professional obligations, both as a member of IPENZ and as a chartered professional engineer."
He said he was committed to the investigations, had co-operated with IPENZ and had expected to see the process to a conclusion.
"Not a day goes by that I don't think about the loss of life in the Christchurch earthquakes and the impact on grieving families. I cannot undo the past.
"I have been and continue to be absolutely committed to ensuring that every possible lesson is learned from this tragedy," he said.
The Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission found the building's principal designer wasn't experienced enough for the job and he wasn't properly supervised by Dr Reay.
The six-storey, 25-year-old building was not built to the standards of the day and when the 6.3-magnitude quake struck in February 2011 it crumpled within seconds and caught fire.
Sixty-five foreign students were among the 115 killed and the building accounted for the bulk of the 185 quake deaths.
The IPENZ decision means police are now the only body investigating building collapses in Christchurch, after the former Department of Building and Housing, the Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission and the coroner completed their work.
Police have said they hope to make a final decision on whether any criminal investigation will begin by the third quarter of this year.
However, for a prosecution, they have to determine a crime had been committed by an individual under the Crimes Act.
