Representatives from the Brazilian Ministry of Labor (MT) "stopped construction" of the Rio Olympic Velodrome on Wednesday as they "found irregularities with respect to the operational safety of those working underground," according to GLOBO ESPORTE. The Rio de Janeiro Municipal Urbanization Enterprise (RioUrbe) and engineering firm Tecnosolo, which is responsible for the project, "have stopped construction" until the they can "find a solution." In a statement, RioUrbe said, "To fulfill the request of the MT, the activities, in this specific area, must be interrupted. In other areas, work will resume normally." The MT "affirmed that aside from the problems with the escape ramp" for underground workers, it "found 'the absence of collection protection in places at risk of falling workers, lack of secure access, material build-up on the edge of slopes, lack of an excavation project and lack of handrails, in addition to a technical report that proves the slope stability.'" Another structure that "presented a problem" was the tennis arena. RioUrbe said that guardrails were missing on the last level of the 10,000-seat bleachers "putting the workers' safety at risk." Construction was halted "until the installation" of these guardrails, which RioUrbe said "would be resolved by Friday" (GLOBO ESPORTE, 4/29).
