Mayor calls for investigation into structural collapse of building in CBD

A STRUCTURAL collapse at a building in Durban central left one person dead and 10 with serious and minor injuries.

The Noor Chambers building in Yusuf Dadoo Street, was the centre of attention as part of its concrete overhead collapsed on Tuesday around 9:30am.

ALSO WATCH: VIDEO: Structural collapse in Durban CBD leaves one dead

Ahmed Adam, a street hawker who has a shop near the site, said there were men working above the overhead when it suddenly collapsed.  Adam said the deceased was one of the men who was “cleaning and renovating” above the overhead.

“The ou (guy) on the top fell straight on his head and the concrete with him after that. When we pulled him out he was dead,” he said.

Adam said they also pulled a woman out from the rubble.

She was passing by when the structure collapsed, trapping her under the rubble.

She was taken straight to hospital when emergency services arrived.

Robert McKenzie, KwaZulu-Natal Emergency Services spokesperson, said firefighters along with emergency personnel pulled out the remaining people trapped inside a store below the overhead.

McKenzie said three people were treated on the scene while seven were taken to a nearby hospital.

ALSO READ: VIDEO: 9 injured after building collapses in Durban

One of the people trapped inside the store, was Aschalew Chaka, 34, who works as a cashier in the clothing store.

“I was by the door when the concrete fell, it struck me on my leg and pushed me inside. So we were essentially trapped and had no idea what was happening,” he said.

Chaka said he and his co-workers, were trapped inside the store for about an hour before firefighters pulled them out.

Chaka suffered a huge scratch on his left leg, which he said made it uncomfortable for him to walk properly.

The incident has thrown a light on problem buildings within the city according to Sharmaine Sewshanker, Democratic Alliance eThekwini PR Councillor.

“The structure appears to have several defects and raises questions about how maintenance and inspections are being carried out,” she said. 

“The DA has long called for the municipality to take action and enforce the city’s problem buildings by-law which has not been adequately enforced, causing an immense risk to innocent people.

Last year, eThekwini Municipality announced there are 80 bad buildings within the inner city some of which in the Mahatma Gandhi Precinct were demolished.

ALSO READ: VIDEO: Demolition of Durban’s ‘problem buildings’ commences

Earlier this year, the Durban Executive Council passed a motion that would see declared bad buildings being wrapped in advertising posters, with the revenue going towards the rehabilitation of the building.

Mxolisi Kaunda, Mayor of eThekwini, said there will be a thorough investigation to establish the cause of the structural collapse.

“As part of our inner-city regeneration programme, we have engaged property owners to comply with the city’s by-laws and more importantly, renovate dilapidated buildings,” he said.

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