A RISING INCIDENCE OF BUILDING COLLAPSE IN NIGERIA

A RISING INCIDENCE OF BUILDING COLLAPSE IN NIGERIA

Shelter is one of the most important human needs. However, some efforts to provide shelter through building construction have been painfully destructive in the process. Sometimes it is the old buildings that have collapsed. Building collapses have resulted from the use of sub- standard materials, poor building plans and lack of maintenance of the structures.
Several buildings have collapsed in Nigeria in recent times, raising concerns over whether sub-standard building materials are being used by construction firms desperate to cut corners and maximize their gains.
Whenever Building collapse occurred, stakeholders always look for whom to blame. Most at times, the largest proportion of the blame goes to the Institutions that are responsible for the training of professionals in the building industry such as, the Institute of Architect, Institute of Building and the Institute of Structural Engineers. These professional bodies in turn shift the largest proportion of the blame to the Government/economic situation of the country or the activities of quack.
In view of the fact that the cause of a building failure is almost always unique to the particular building in question, experts have try to identify some of the factor that could be responsible for building collapse in Nigeria. However, the general reason why buildings may be susceptible to collapse is lack of adequate compaction of the soil inside the foundation before placing hard-core and pouring the "German floor". Steps that could help avert the problems in the first place: The quality of material used is a factor in building failure e.g. cement, rod etc. Weak soils also, because of their geologic make up, some layers of soil are just not strong enough to carry the weight of a building. This is mainly applicable to the top layer of the soil on most parcels of land.
The Nigeria experiences have shown that building collapses have taken a lot of lives hence, the need for prevention and control. Therefore it recommended that; the constituted authority should discourage the construction of multi storey buildings by just anybody. -The construction of multi storey building must be properly contracted through the competitive tendering method, this will make contractor become liable for collapse. -The contractor should be made to produce a built document at the end of construction indicating the expected life of the building, the maximum numbers of person expected on the building at any time, the periods of maintenance and a statement of guarantee stating that the building is safe for use. -A copy of the document above should be deposited with the local government authority for proper monitoring.