Poor Planning Caused Construction Collapse at OK Veterans Hospital

A federal report has found construction flaws were the cause of a collapse and millions of taxpayer dollars wasted at an Oklahoma veterans hospital. The VA's Office of Inspector General found a shoddily planned construction of a generator at Muskogee's Jack C. Montgomery VA Medical Center caused the collapse of a hillside and parking lot. It will cost nearly $17.5 million to repair.

In June 2014, BCI Construction was hired to build a generator and a building to house the generator system for the hospital. BCI began excavations a year later despite a lack of VA approval or a plan. Five months later the parking lot and hillside collapsed after an unamed adviser recommended dumping excavator soil over the hillside.

In addition, 49 federal safety violations were discovered during inspections but never reported to the government's contracting officer.

(more on the construction collapse at the Oklahoma hospital...)