A report by the Building Collapse Prevention Guild listed engagement of non-professionals, use of substandard materials and other factors among the causes of the collapse of a seven-storey building in Banana Island, Lagos State.
The guild, made up of professionals in the building and construction sector, stated this in its report following an on-site assessment of the collapsed building.
The report stated that the building collapse of April 12, 2023 brought the total number of collapsed buildings in Lagos State to 326 between 1974 to 2023.
This means that Lagos State alone has accounted for 59 per cent of building collapse cases in the country in the last 50 years.
Outlining factors that contributed to the collapse of the structure, the guild pointed out that a project board was not displayed on the site to show the nature of the construction, the names of the client, architect and engineer handling the project.
The report further stated that the sizes of the columns used could not support the number of floors embarked upon by the developer
It said there was also conflict as to a number of floors specified in the construction drawing, which was yet to get approval as of the time of the collapse.
The report read in part, “It seems that it is only in Nigeria that the practice of building engineering services is thrown to all and sundry and the consequences of the absence of effective control mechanism are the menace of incessant building collapse in the country.
“While the BCPG highlights the above possible causes of the seven-story building collapse at Banana Island, it throws its weight behind the action of the Lagos State Government for an immediate investigation into the collapse of the building and BCPG being an independent body of qualified professionals highly recommends that at least three members of the BCPG be part of the investigation committee set up by the state.”
Further explaining the causes of the collapse, the guild said the non-involvement of qualified and experienced building professionals might have led to the collapse of the structure.
It said the punching shear stress on the flat slab due to poor analysis and design of the structure also played a contributory role in the collapse of the structure.
Other factors identified by the guild include use of inferior construction materials and possible foundation failure.
The report read further, “The BCPG also supports the suspension of all on-going construction works on Banana Islandtoenable thorough investigation of the structural stability of the buildings through forensic tests and prevent recurrent collapse of buildings.
“BCPG recommended that the process of auditing of on-going construction work should be completed within four weeks in collaboration with the owners and developers of the buildings.
“For the benefits of research, and the share of knowledge among the professionals in the building industry, the State Government should make the result of the investigation known to the members of the public and the professionals.”
Meanwhile, in an earlier interview with The PUNCH, a representative of Joe Faraday Limited, and the Chief Security Officer in charge of the Banana Island site, Anthony Onama, had said the building was duly approved.
Onama said, “The report that the building was not approved is false. There are no building plans to the best of my knowledge that Joe Faraday handles that we don’t do the needful. At every stage, we also do integrity tests. We have our external consultants who are experts, including our internal engineers and these people follow every articulated step to get through every process of our structure.”
When asked what could have gone wrong with the building, Onama said, “Nature. It could be nature; let’s just leave it that way because accidents happen.
When the Source contacted Joe Faraday via the official telephone lines on its website and Instagram twice, it rang out.
Sources:Punchng
