Iconic Sydney Opera House roof replica dismantled in NE China  

江苏阜宁山寨“悉尼歌剧院”拆除 官方称漏雨改造

四年前被媒体曝光的江苏阜宁县山寨“悉尼歌剧院”，近日被悄然拆除。记者18日在现场了解到，该建筑顶部帆状造型已经拆完，收尾工作仍在进行。官方回应此举是“漏雨改造”，但不会再建成原来的造型。[查看全文]

(ECNS) -- The iconic roof of a Sydney Opera House replica in northeast China's Liaoning province has been dismantled, with local authorities blaming severe leaks, chinanews.com reported.

The Sydney Opera House-style building in a park of Fuxin county, actually a lavish waterside restaurant, was exposed by media four years ago, with the local government receiving criticizm for splashing out 1.1 million yuan ($179,072) on its construction.

Reporters found that the iconic roof structures had already disappeared by Tuesday afternoon, while workers were busy loading dismantled material onto trucks.

A restaurant staff member said demolition started two days ago, with rumors that the county government ordered the move. "Maybe the style is not satisfying," the staff member commented.

Another senior staff member said the lavish restaurant was shut down in early 2013 amid the Party's campaign against extravagance. A new contractor had decorated the place in May this year, he added, saying that local authorities had ordered the roof structure to be changed.

A spokesman for the county's housing construction bureau said the demolition had occurred due to structural leakage.