The Sagrada Família may have 'structural problems' unlinked to the high-speed train tunnel, suggests Catalan minister

Barcelona (CNA).- The construction of a train tunnel close to the famous church of the Sagrada Família is polemical debate in Catalonia. The Catalan and Spanish Governments deny that the construction plans are dangerous for the monument, while neighbours and some opposition parties are trying to stop the perforations. A new report by a group of experts highlighted that Gaudí's cathedral may suffer for an 'overload'.

The Catalan Minister for Territory and Infrastructures, Joaquim Nadal, said that if he was the person-in-charge of the security of the tunnel and the Sagrada Família, he would ask for an audit to determine whether the building “has any structural problem unrelated to the works that will go beside it'. However, he said that there is “unjustified alarm” in regards to the security of the cathedral.

Joaquim Rull, a member of Spanish Parliament for the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Party (CiU), criticised Nadal and urged the minister to stop construction instead of pretending to be a simple “commentator”. The high-speed train tunnel, though, is a major work lead by the Spanish Government, not the Catalan Administration.

Parliamentarians in the Spanish Congress urged Madrid's Government to stop drilling in the tunnel because of the “high risk” for the Sagrada Família. They also asked for a new security report on the works.

The General Director for Train Infrastructures in Spain, Carlos Juárez, argued that the tunnel is “absolutely safe” and has all the “security measures” to avoid damages to the Sagrada Família and all other buildings in the area. He said he was “surprised” by the petition from some political parties to stop the works.