Government of Onitsha orders four-story structures to be demolished
The administration of Anambra State has mandated the destruction of two four-story structures situated on Amobi Street in the Onitsha South Local administration Area.
According to Ndiigboworldwide, the ordered demolition was intended to prevent the affected buildings’ impending collapse and the ensuing casualties. This was in response to the area’s ongoing building collapses and casualties, which included some under-construction buildings that collapsed between February and March, killing over eight people and injuring no fewer than 26 others.
According to information obtained by Ndiigboworldwide, merchants have already paid for the two buildings that house more than 800 stores and are intended for commercial use, prior to the project’s ultimate completion.
The use of inferior and substandard materials for the project resulted in the decked section of one of the buildings collapsing, according to Ndiigboworldwide findings.
The demolition order was prompted by the two buildings’ frail decking and fractured pillars, which are now close to one another.
During a Tuesday site visit, Chief Emeka Orji, the chairman of the Onitsha South Local Government Area, revealed the demolition’s news.
Orji voiced worries about the project’s continued existence in spite of the state government’s directive to halt construction around a month ago.
He said that while the two buildings were previously designated for destruction, their owners had erased the markings and had started conducting extensive business operations on the ground level.
He also noted that, in spite of the demolition order, the contractors had already started work on another set of slabs in preparation for the fifth floor’s decking.
According to him, the two contractors managing the projects learned that representatives from the local administration would be stopping by. fled to unidentified locations, perplexed as to why anybody would decide to put their life in danger while conducting business in a death trap.
“Remember that the governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, had ordered that all building plans must personally get his approval before construction, but these two buildings did not have the approval of the governor,” he said. “The two buildings must go down in the next two days and that is the order.”
“We have to take action in order to preserve the lives of our people as well as prevent the deaths and injuries that have historically resulted from buildings collapsing.”
“Observe the materials they are using. As you can all see, the backs of the buildings have already fallen. We blocked the entrances to the two buildings with tape, but they took it down, wiped up the demolition marks, and carried on with their job in Onitsha.
Before the project was finished, traders paid for the two buildings that housed more than 800 stores. Before they were designated for destruction, the stores were offered to prospective tenants.
Remember that three buildings in Onitsha had fallen in the last three months, leaving eight people dead at the site? The state administration was forced to clean the wreckage and seize the properties in issue.
