Trepidation over spate of defective buildings in metropolis

THE defective and abandoned buildings doting various parts of Lagos have become a cause of worry for many residents.

Some residents, who spoke to The Guardian expressed worries that these buildings have not only become a safe heaven for hoodlums, who wreak havocs on citizens but constitute danger to surrounding buildings.

The fears were heightened by the recent collapse of a three-storey building, earlier marked for demolition by the Lagos State Building Control Agency in 2012 in Ebute Meta area of the metropolis.

The building, located at No. 29 Oloto Street, collapsed on the right side leaving the other half hanging dangerously over adjoining buildings.

Before its collapse, residents said it has remained unoccupied since 2012 after a portion of it at the back collapsed, forcing the occupants at front apartments to vacate.

According to them, the building, since then, remained a refuse dump, posing a danger to the people living in the vicinity even as the place became a hideout for social miscreants.

The building eventually collapsed a week after another one fell at Yaba area of Lagos.

A resident living nearby, Ademola Ramoni, said the building was marked for demolition when the back portion, which he claimed killed about 10 persons, collapsed in 2012.

He said that after a part of the house collapsed, rescue workers from the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency and Lagos State Building Control Agency used sledgehammers to demolish the entire building from the point of the partial collapse.

Mufu Adeoye, who is a resident in one of the buildings on the street, called on the state government to urgently do something about other defective buildings in the state to prevent further destruction of lives and property.

According to him, there was also the need for government agencies to demolish the buildings, which fail integrity test to avoid endangering the lives of the occupants.

An occupant in a house located at No. 27 Oloto Street, said integrity test should be carried out on the buildings near the scene.

A concerned Isolo-based structural engineer, Michael Orji, expressed worries that some defective buildings at the Jakande Estate in Ejigbo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of the state, which failed the integrity test conducted on them by the Lagos State Raw Materials Testing Agency, following the collapse of a two-storey building in the estate in November 2012 are still not demolished.

He said the collapsed building in 2012 claimed the lives of two siblings while their mother sustained fatal injuries.

According to him, the incident was the reason the state government conducted integrity test on several buildings in the estate built by Lateef Jakande’s administration.

The result of the test showed that 50 of the buildings built 30 years ago, through the Lagos Building Investment Corporation (LBIC) are defective and need to be demolished.

Apart from the buildings at Jakande Estate, Orji disclosed that several buildings in other estates and parts of the metropolis, which failed integrity test in the state, are still left in tact.

He appealed to the government to ensure that buildings, which are not structurally habitable, are either strengthened or demolished to avert further loss of lives.