Nigeria loses 3,235 souls to building collapse in 12 years

No fewer than 3,235 people have died, 252 buildngs collapsed and resources worth N3.5bn lost between 2007 and 2018 as a results of building collapse in the country.

Head of Construction Management Unit, Standard Organization of Nigeria, Abuja, Mr. Paul Oke, disclosed this on Thursday.

The incidence of building collapse in Nigeria has been on the increase in recent times. The reoccurring menace has claimed many innocent lives, valuable properties and huge investments.

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Although structural failures of building may arise from natural catastrophe, the pivotal cause of incessant building collapse in Nigeria is the non – compliance with the building industry construction standard and regulation for designated buildings.

According to Oke, rising incidence of building collapse were both natural and man-made disasters due to poor supervision and refusal to use certified materials, among other things.

“A contractor/developer needs to concentrate his time and resources in these sectors in order to accomplish set goals for the client/organisation against collapse of building,” he said.

According to him, it is important to always abide by the building codes and national standard to eliminate the building collapse in the country.

He further advised the public to engage the services of professionals and use of standard materials for the construction of their projects.

“Incidents of collapsed buildings can however be reduced if not completely eliminated if relevant bodies in charge of giving approvals engage the services of experienced civil or structural engineers,” he said.