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Nigeria records 22 building collapse, 33 deaths in 7 months – COREN
By Francesca Hangeior.
The Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), the regulatory body governing the practice of engineering, has said that Nigeria recorded 22 building collapses between January and July 2024.
The President of COREN, Prof. Sadiq Abubakar, made this known while addressing a news conference with the theme: ’’The Incessant Spate of Building Collapse in Nigeria in Recent Times: A Call for Sustainable Collaboration by All Stakeholders.
Abubakar said that from January to July 14 alone, at least 22 cases of building collapse have been reported in Nigeria, with Lagos accounting for 27.27 per cent, Abuja and Anambra at 18.18 per cent each.
He added that Ekiti and Plateau followed with 9.09 per cent each, and Kano, Taraba, and Niger states accounted for 4.55 per cent each.
“Records also showed that Lagos takes the lead in the incidence of building collapses.
“As a matter of fact, over 91 buildings have collapsed, resulting in the deaths of over 354 persons in Lagos from 2012 to date.
“Similarly, in Abuja, about 30 buildings have collapsed from 1993 until date, resulting in the deaths of more than 64 persons and injury of many.
“The most recent occurrences of building collapses close to DMGS Onitsha, Anambra State, on June 12 and that of a school (Saint Academy) in Plateau on July 13, where 22 students died and 134 were injured, as well as the building collapse in Kubwa, Abuja.
He said that the incidents were worrisome.
According to him, this calls for deep reflection and collaboration among all stakeholders in stemming the tide.
’’While we commiserate with all victims and families, we want to commend the efforts of all emergency and security services for their prompt response at the time.’’
According to Abubabkar, the leading causes of building collapse vary from one location to the other.
He said some buildings collapsed as a result of ageing, and from some investigations and research conducted over time, use of substandard construction materials and structural failure were also responsible.
He said that other factors included the illegal change of use of buildings, illegal addition of floors, quackery, and inadequate or lack of supervision and oversight.
He added that other factors were faulty foundations, a lack of soil or geotechnical investigation, and sharp and corrupt practices, among others.
Abubakar also commended the respective affected state governments for constituting a panel of enquiry to look into the various cases with a view to finding out the immediate and remote causes and preventing future occurrences.
“This is not the time for apportioning blame or contest of superiority within the built environment, but a time for all stakeholders to unite and proffer workable and lasting solution, particularly in the prevention of building collapses.
“All professionals within the built environment have a role to play in this.
“In this regard, we have identified and categorised many stakeholders that we will be engaging shortly,’’ he said.
The President said that the proliferation of illegal miners even within residential areas, as reported in some quarters, was a danger to the structural stability of buildings.
He added that the council had therefore, urged affected states to take urgent steps to reverse the trend, adding that it was also time to enforce the compulsory insurance of some buildings under construction.
Abubakar said that, perturbed by the incessant and avoidable incidences of building collapses in Nigeria and loss of lives in recent times, COREN had deemed it necessary to make major moves.
He said that COREN had taken some steps to monitor and prevent building collapses by training and licensing Engineering Regulation Monitoring (ERM) inspectors.
Abubakar added that COREN had reconstituted its Council Committee on Engineering Regulation Monitoring (ERM) and added an additional role of enforcement to its responsibility in line with the amended COREN Act.
He said that COREN had constituted the ERM&E Task Force at regional levels, including Ibadan, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Kano, FCT, Gombe, and Lagos, among other steps to tackle building collapse.
According to him, such financial mishandling not only disrupts critical public services and projects but also results in major losses to the nation’s purse—resources that could have been channelled into crucial services and developmental efforts, as laid out in Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution.
Speaker Abbas, thereafter setup a Special Committee to be chaired by Rep. Chinedu Martins to immediately launch a probe into the “Utilisation of take-off grants, bailout funds, and interventions allocated to MDAs, government institutions, and GOEs from 2015 to present.”
The FCT Minister, Mr. Nyesom Wike, expressed satisfaction with the progress on the Abuja light rail project, reaffirming its May 29 delivery as sacrosanct.
He made these assurances after inspecting the ongoing construction of access roads to the train stations on Wednesday, from Metro Train Station in the Central Area to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
Reassuring journalists accompanying him, the minister reiterated that President Bola Tinubu would commission the rail project on May 29 to mark his second year in office.
The visited stations were Wupa station near Idu and Bassanjiwa station near the airport.
“This is part of our routine inspection of ongoing projects to see the contractors’ progress,” Wike explained.
“We are working day and night to fulfill our promise to President Tinubu and FCT residents. By May, Mr. President will ride on the Metro line.”
Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen are currently invading some communities in the Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State.
According to sources, the herdsmen armed with AK-47 rifles stormed the community around 04:15pm on Thursday.
“Our lives are in danger this evening, armed Fulani herdsmen, about 600 in numbers have taken over our communities this evening,” a resident told SaharaReporters.
“They’re currently moving around towns in Ukum Local Government Area of Benue state. No security personnel at all, Governor Alia didn’t send security, they said operation will start soon once they (herders) have observed the place.”
The insecurity situation in Benue has been alarming in recent weeks with attacks from gunmen suspected to be herdsmen.
The media had reported that suspected herdsmen again unleashed terror in Benue State, attacking three communities in Otukpo Local Government Area (LGA) on Wednesday, just a day after 11 people were killed in a deadly raid on Otobi community.
The latest victims of the escalating violence were Emichi, Odudaje, and Okpamaju, communities that had previously suffered an attack in February, which left five people dead.
However, the renewed attack has created fear and mass displacement among residents, with women and children fleeing to safety.
Local sources say the death toll from the fresh attack remains unclear, but several casualties are feared.
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