Building Collapse: When Compromise Breeds Needless Deaths, Loss, Agony
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Stating the contribution of substandard iron to the menace of collapsed buildings, Soji Adetokun, 35, an iron bender, revealed that sharp practices also exist in the quality of iron rods used for constructing supporting pillars and beams.
From all indications, many more innocent souls may still be trapped and possibly maimed or lost in building collapses as long as compromise, love for lucre, and corruption remain prevalent in the Nigerian built sector. MURITALA AYINLA reports that the avoidable tragedies of building collapse could be nipped in the bud if only the laws are rigorously and strictly implemented.
He stood out among the survivors and relatives of dead victims invited by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) for financial assistance. For nearly an hour that the programme lasted, he did not exchange words with anybody. He remained confined to the wheelchair, too engrossed to show interest in the happenings in the hall, obviously lost in thoughts about the fate that befell him. As more survivors walked out to receive cheques from the Lagos State Government as financial assistance following their losses in the building collapse, tears rolled down his cheeks. His wife, Shakeerah Hassan, wiped his face, even as he managed to hold back tears, but emotion failed him. Filled with emotion, the couple finally broke into tears.
That was Jamiu Hassan, one of the lucky survivors of the 63 Massey Street, Ita-Faji, Lagos Island building collapse, which claimed 20 lives, including 16 pupils of Ohen Nursery and Primary School. He was taking a nap on the top floor of the building when it caved in. For almost seven hours, he was buried in the debris of the ill-fated building. While under the rubble, he shouted for help, but nobody could hear him. He heard many pupils screaming for help, but he was motionless as the beams of the collapsing structure had already pinned him down. Emergency responders and other volunteers unknowingly walked on the rubble under which he was buried for many hours, but nobody could hear him. By the time he was excavated, he had sustained severe spinal cord and rib injuries, confining him to a wheelchair since the incident.
The tears of the 36-year-old driver were not only provoked by the inadequacy of the money given to him to secure new accommodation but also by the overwhelming degree of his misfortune—how the tragic incident had rendered him incapacitated and confined to a wheelchair.
Amidst tears, he said: “My issues are more complicated. I can no longer walk on my feet like others. If others eventually get over the loss, will I also? Between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., I was trapped in the rubble. I heard the pupils screaming under the carcass of the building, but I was helpless because I had been trapped under the building’s beam. I do not know how to cope with life again when I can’t stand on my feet to work and take care of my family.”
Yetunde was too traumatised to recognise or greet anyone around her. The sight of her little boy lying critically on the Lagos Island General Hospital bed worried her. Seeing the little boy’s legs in Plaster of Paris (POP) was a burden too heavy to bear. For almost nine hours, the distraught mother couldn’t sit. She burst into tears intermittently as she ran from one pharmacy to another in search of the prescribed drugs and other needs as demanded by the doctors and other healthcare givers at the hospital.
Like many mothers, the 27-year-old had no premonition of the fate that befell them on Wednesday, March 13, 2019. On that day, the trader had woken as early as 4:30 a.m. to prepare for the day’s work and make breakfast for her husband and child. By 7:00 a.m., she was already at Ohen Nursery and Primary School, located in the ill-fated building. She left her little boy with the school security, promising to return early to pick him up, only to find him in critical condition at the hospital.
As shocking as her story seemed, she was one of the few lucky mothers who met their children alive, though with varying degrees of injuries. Many parents were not so fortunate. They bid their wards goodbye in the morning and never saw their little angels again. They had dropped them off at the three-storey school building, hoping to pick them up in the afternoon, but on returning, they found a sea of sympathisers and onlookers gathered around the collapsed school building. Their beloved kids were buried alive in the debris. It was a heartbreaking experience, too difficult for many to bear. In the tragic incident, entire families were wiped out. A woman was said to have committed suicide when she could not withstand the agony of losing two of her three children to the tragedy.
For hours, innocent children cried for help under the wreckage of the collapsed structure, but nobody outside could hear them. Sympathisers and onlookers were helpless—the fallen slabs and wreckage had covered them. They cried and wailed until they succumbed to death, while the few lucky ones were rescued by sympathisers and emergency responders.
As touching as the Ita-Faji school and residential building collapse was, life remains permanently altered for Okeoseye Odia, a policeman who lost four children to a flood-induced mudslide in the Magodo area of Lagos metropolis. Odia’s children—Sylva, 23, Sayo, 15, Clinton, 13, and Endurance, 8—were all consumed when a flood broke through the family house at 50, Otun Araromi Street, Orisha, Magodo Phase 1, in the early hours of Saturday, November 7, 2015.
Despite being assisted with N5 million by the state government to secure accommodation, he remained visibly overwhelmed by the magnitude of his loss in the unfortunate incident. He is currently battling the miserable circumstances to which the regrettable occurrence has subjected him.
The experiences above are only samples of the monumental pain and havoc wrecked on many Nigerians whose relatives have been victims of collapsed buildings. Such occurrences, which have become a recurring decimal, inflict pain and agony on many families. It is, indeed, a sad phenomenon that seems to have snowballed into a regular happenstance in Lagos, the emerging “Mega City.”
Building collapse is a tragic incident that has brought immense pain and discomfort to its victims. It often occurs when least expected—sometimes envisaged—but it is always frightening, leaving even the most organised individuals or organisations confused. It comes with stories of agony and lamentation. Fraying nerves are difficult to calm, and the bereaved are hard to console. Those cherished are suddenly lost or permanently maimed. It is a disaster that cruelly afflicts helpless persons. Like a thief in the night, it intrudes rudely into victims’ lives, venting its destruction with abandon. One hardly survives it, and those who do rarely overcome the lasting trauma.
Whenever there is a bang, innocent victims are suddenly buried alive in the rubble, left to writhe in pain for hours, sometimes days. Others succumb to death before the often delayed rescue—mostly due to poor access to the site. Its victims over the years include, but are not limited to, innocent occupants, pupils, residents, hawkers, bystanders, passersby, labourers, and porters who, unfortunately, choose to school, rest, or live in the ill-fated building after a hectic day’s work. In many instances, entire families are wiped out. Sometimes, the kids are spared, only to live as orphans. Many women have also become widows due to this avoidable conundrum.
In Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre, building collapse spares no region or district. No part of the state appears free from these ugly incidents that have claimed hundreds of lives. From the densely populated and choked buildings on Lagos Island and Ebute-Metta to the sparsely populated Ojodu Berger axis, no one knows when or where the next tragedy will strike. From the slums of Ajegunle and Ijora Badia to the highbrow areas of Lekki and Ajah, there are grave lamentations. The well-planned areas of Dolphin and Jakande Estate to the poorly planned residences in Ketu—frustration remains palpable.
Government buildings are not exempt either. In the past, buildings owned, financed, and sometimes handled by government officials have had their fair share of the challenge. On November 5, 2013, a shopping complex owned by the Iru/Victoria Island Local Council Development Area collapsed on Muri Okunola Street, killing four people and injuring several others.
Also, seven people were trapped and injured, including the site engineer, when a building belonging to the Office of the Drainage, an arm of the state Ministry of Environment, caved in on December 15, 2011, within the premises of the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja.
Building Collapse Statistics in Lagos
According to the 2018 emergency report of the Lagos Fire Service, a total of 11 buildings collapsed in the state in 2018, while 23 people died in the incidents. In 2017, the record of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency also shows that 29 lives were lost in the 20 building collapse incidents recorded in the state. Thirty-four lives perished in the Lekki Garden City building collapse in 2016. Between January and June 2019, the state recorded seven incidents of building collapse, with the loss of over 24 lives, including pupils of Ohen Nursery and Primary School at Ita-Faji.
But successive governments have not watched the situation in helpless frustration. In the past, committees have been inaugurated and other measures taken, yet the structures would not stop crumbling. The death toll from the ugly incidents keeps rising, while many have, over time, sustained permanent disabilities.
The tragic incidents seem to be more peculiar in Lagos. To buttress the frequency of building collapses in the “Centre of Excellence,” a Tribunal on Collapsed Buildings set up by the former Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola, on November 18, 2013, reported that over 130 cases of collapsed buildings were recorded in the state between 2007 and 2013 alone.
The tribunal, in its report, said: “Over 130 cases of collapsed buildings were recorded in the state between 2007 and 2013 alone, while in 2014, no fewer than six cases were recorded by the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA). In these incidents, a total of 128 lives were lost, with the highest casualty figure of 116 persons coming from the Synagogue Church of All Nations Guest House incident that shook the world on September 12, 2014.”
Going by the tribunal’s report submitted to Fashola, an average of 18 houses collapsed per year, leaving hundreds of people bruised or buried alive. According to the Chairman of the tribunal, Architect Abimbola Ajayi, five buildings caved in while the panel was still sitting.
So prevalent are these incidents in the state that between January and December 2015, a total of 16 buildings collapsed.
Why Buildings Crumble
The causes of frequent building collapses are as numerous as structurally distressed buildings. According to the former Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Olutoyin Ayinde, a town planner, “Buildings won’t stop crumbling in Lagos until contractors stop the hasty development and embrace a scientific approach where all the appropriate and lawful steps in building are followed without compromise.”
The former commissioner said most Nigerians, including contractors, build by instalment and, as a result, jump due process when it comes to construction. He also said that Nigeria, particularly Lagos, continues to witness these unfortunate incidents due to the failure of builders who, according to him, either compromise standards for selfish reasons or are incompetent. He explained that building construction is scientific and requires due process by experts.
Ayinde, who is also the 2nd National Vice President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners, added that most builders hardly get approval before erecting their structures. Even when they do, they attempt to cut corners and flout building regulations.
“Building projects require serious planning. The ideal thing is that you must have the resources to fund the building from the acquisition of the land to the roof and virtually everything you need to do on the land. But the reverse is the case in Nigeria. People build piecemeal and without proper plans on how to fund construction. As a result, compromise sets in on the part of project handlers and property owners.
“There are other cases of collapsed buildings resulting from violations of approved building plans. For instance, there are instances where two floors were approved, and the consultant went ahead to build four storeys. There are also cases of professionals who are either inexperienced or compromising,” Ayinde added.
Investigations have also revealed that most buildings that circumvent official supervision are usually built at night and during other odd hours to avoid scrutiny by building regulatory and enforcement agents. This may be why the Lagos State government, at one point, prohibited building construction at night, on Sundays, and on public holidays to prevent structures from being erected when regulatory officials were not at work.
The directive, however, made little difference due to poor enforcement of the prohibition order.
Explaining the impact of substandard blocks on building collapses, the Chairman of Y.K. Block Industry, Alhaji Mustapha Yekini, identified the declining quality of cement and other building materials as one of the major causes of collapsed buildings. He said that most block makers are yet to adapt to the changing quality of cement mixtures in construction.
According to him, most block makers in Lagos use a bag of cement mixed with sand to mould 40 to 45 nine-inch blocks, while the standard—and in fact, the practice in other parts of the country—is a maximum of 27 blocks per bag of cement. “No matter how you look at it, substandard blocks can contribute to building collapse. The concrete beams in buildings rest on blocks. Some block makers could use a bag of cement to make even more than 45 blocks of nine inches, and it is usually 70 or more blocks if it is six inches.”
A chieftain of the Association of Real Estate Developers of Lagos State, Olumegbon Mutairu, was quick to blame the menace on the sharp practices of builders. According to him, “It is true that some of the major factors militating against the reduction of building collapses are greed on the part of some developers and the use of substandard or inadequate materials. You can’t expect the strength of a building constructed with a bag of cement for 20 blocks to be the same as one with 50 blocks per bag of cement.
“But on our part, we are collaborating with relevant state government agencies to check the menace of building collapses. We are sensitising our members regularly on standards and safety for human lives.”
An official of the Lagos State Material Testing Laboratory, who pleaded anonymity, gave a scientific dimension to the issue. Besides substandard building materials, he said, the salty nature of sand and water used by contractors in the state is another major factor. According to him, “Due to Lagos State’s location as a coastal area, most Lagos water is salty, just as the sand contains chemical reactions that may affect the mixture of the cement.
“The effect of all this shortens the lifespan of buildings, as some parts begin to chip off over time. The composition of salty sand and water also has a debilitating effect on the iron rods that form part of the concrete, causing the iron to rust.”
He also blamed the regulatory agencies responsible for monitoring and controlling the circulation of standard products. The continuous influx of substandard materials into the country, he said, shows that these agencies have no value for human life.
He said: “In other climes, fake or substandard materials have no place in the market; you can’t even find them. They shouldn’t be in the market in the first place if we had a working system in the country. If we are determined to prevent avoidable disasters, only the most qualitative building materials should be allowed in our market.”
Conflicting Interest Breeds Compromise
When price becomes the only deciding factor in the calculations of the building contractor and financier, compromise sets in. While the building owner wants to minimise costs as much as possible, the contractor wants to maximise profit, thereby pitting one interest against the other.
A developer who confided in this reporter said that the developer or contractor will always have his way since he dedicates his time and energy to the building more than the owner or financier.
New Telegraph also discovered that some builders often compromise, either due to the financiers’ inability to provide adequate funds for the project or for selfish reasons.
Another developer, who identified himself simply as Chief Ajasa, somehow justified the compromise. He said that for developers to maximise profit, they sometimes take loans from banks to assist landlords in constructing buildings, after which they collect rent for a certain number of years to recoup expenses incurred during construction.
“Since most landlords won’t let go of their land and lack the wherewithal to rehabilitate their distressed buildings, the only available option for them is to hand the buildings over to developers for rehabilitation or reconstruction, with a specific agreement on cost recovery,” he explained.
In such scenarios, according to Chief Ajasa, all expertise resides with the developer, who takes almost all the decisions, leaving room for compromises of all sorts. He told this reporter that he had built several houses under similar arrangements on Lagos Island and in the Ebute-Metta area of Lagos.
His words: “Some of these buildings are owned by aged landlords or deceased individuals whose children lack the ability to rebuild or renovate them. When we take possession of such houses with a view to rebuilding them, we make agreements with the family on the terms and conditions for recouping our money.
“So, in this kind of arrangement, there is no way the property owner will have a say on the quality of materials used. Hence, we opt for the cheapest possible materials. There is no way to make it in this business if one doesn’t know how because their conditions are usually difficult for us if we must adhere to proper building standards.”
According to him, there are times his colleagues have to reduce the number of cement bags used and cut down on iron rods, even when the property owner has the financial capacity to fund the renovation or construction work.
“For us to make a profit, there are instances where we use iron rods of lesser quality or those produced locally. Nothing will happen. That is how to survive in this job. And you know this is Lagos—before the building is completed, people will come and pay for two or three years’ rent. That is how we make our own money too. Na fish dey chop him fellow fish to survive in the water,” Chief Ajasa added.
Beyond the hunger for profit, there seems to be a psychological dimension to greed and corruption among Lagos developers, as many of them believe it is natural to cheat in order to survive.
A popular female developer on Lagos Island, who simply identified herself as Mrs Bose, said it is a taboo for a developer to handle the construction of two buildings without building another from the profits made.
“No building contractor should be unable to build an additional house from the contract of two buildings, no matter what. He or she must find a way around it. It is not corruption; it is simply knowing how to succeed in one’s field. If you call it corruption, what will you call those leaders who steal billions of Nigerian money with their pens?” she asked.
Substandard Materials and Their Consequences
Stating the contribution of substandard iron to the menace of collapsed buildings, Soji Adetokun, 35, an iron bender, revealed that sharp practices also exist in the quality of iron rods used for constructing supporting pillars and beams.
The artisan explained that if the iron steel is not strong enough, the building could collapse regardless of the quality or quantity of cement used in the construction.
Although he did not disclose whether he had ever used inferior materials for building construction, he confirmed that a typical Nigerian iron bender has the tendency to opt for inferior quality in order to make more profit.
His words: “No matter how much you give some artisans, for profit reasons, some will still buy substandard iron rods. But if the landlord or building owner pays enough, some might go for better quality. That is why if you are building, you must be ready to prioritise quality over your purse.”
The 1st Vice President of the Nigerian Institute of Building, Mr Kunle Awobodu, also listed faulty design, lack of comprehensive subsoil investigation, quackery, use of substandard materials, poor workmanship, non-adherence to professional advice, and greed as major reasons for the rising cases of building collapses in the country.
Awobodu, a former President of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild, also blamed the situation on weather conditions affecting building structures and other compounding factors.
Flouting of Building Regulations
According to the General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Olalekan Shodehinde, the main reason for building collapses is the non-compliance of building owners with agency regulations and the influx of quackery in the construction sector.
He stated that people flagrantly flout building regulations and approvals, which is why, when buildings collapse—particularly storey buildings—investigations often reveal that builders had contravened approved guidelines.
“They don’t always build according to the approved plan, especially when it is a storey building. There are times when residential buildings are converted into six- or seven-storey shopping complexes by unscrupulous builders.”
“If you build properly and obtain government permits by following due process and engaging professionals, that building is not likely to collapse. If I could do magic to remove quackery from the construction sector, 50 percent of the risk would be solved,” he added.
He lamented that the entire construction process is being run by quacks in all cadres—engineers, architects, and town planners.
AREDOLS: Businessmen or Building Professionals?
While members of the Association of Real Estate Developers of Lagos State (AREDOLS), who are responsible for developing residential and commercial buildings, claim to be core professionals in the construction sector, experts disagree over their competency.
According to LASBCA boss Shodehinde, AREDOLS is a group of educated businessmen. While the group may have some professionals among them, they might not be registered professionals in the construction sector.
Weak Implementation and Corruption
Today in Lagos, several buildings have been marked and declared distressed, yet people still inhabit them. Some under construction and sealed for violating approved plans are allowed to continue construction, even when the conditions for unsealing them are unmet.
It is not uncommon to see building regulatory agencies aggressively marking buildings as distressed only when a building has recently collapsed.
Following the tragic collapse at Ita-Faji, the Lagos State Government said it demolished 40 structures that failed integrity tests out of 283 identified distressed buildings.
Giving details, the immediate past Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Prince Rotimi Ogunleye, stated that 136 distressed buildings were identified in Lagos Island alone, while 60 weak structures were detected in Ikeja.
The Way Forward
Experts agree that failure to implement recommendations from previous investigative committees remains the root cause of recurrent building collapses.
It is ironic that after spending huge resources managing the aftermath of building collapse tragedies and setting up panels to investigate, committee reports rarely receive the necessary attention. Implementing recommendations remains the best way to prevent future occurrences.
Going by the findings of the six-member and five-member committees set up by Fashola and his successor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, on building collapses in Lagos, there is a need for stiffer penalties for anyone found culpable in the recorded cases of building collapse to minimise the incidences.
Both committees called for strict enforcement of the building law as well as the implementation of their recommendations.
For instance, the Building Collapse Tribunal set up by Mr Fashola and chaired by Mrs Abimbola Ajayi also called for the implementation of the provision of the law that empowers the state government to try violators and offenders of the building laws.
The Tribunal chairman said: “Although there is a provision for the summary trial of violators and offenders in the laws examined by the Tribunal, there is no record of any person prosecuted or sanctioned for incidents of building collapse by the Ministry of Justice, the Nigerian Police, or any other known organ.”
But with the continued trial and probing of the Synagogue Church building collapse by the Lagos State government, even with the change in government, experts are of the view that both building project financiers and contractors would think twice and prioritise the safety of human lives while erecting or rehabilitating any structure.
The experts, who also called on the government to probe other buildings that have collapsed after the Synagogue Church building tragedy, said that doing so would not only serve as a deterrent to others but also make people value lives and be more considerate while building. They advocate that such cases must be pursued to a logical conclusion to ensure that those found culpable in the building collapse case face the wrath of the law for their heinous crimes against humanity.
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