The building collapse tragedy in Ormonde, in the south of Johannesburg, has exposed the City of Johannesburg’s lax oversight of building inspections.
Sunday World can reveal that the inspector tasked with the area where the disaster took place earlier this week is responsible for the oversight of a staggering 9 500 properties.
City of Joburg spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane confirmed to Sunday World that only one inspector carries the oversight responsibility for the vast area that includes Ormonde.
He also admitted to the limitations this creates for the city’s 59 inspectors’ capacity to identify transgressions or any other building violations.
“Ideally, the city would increase the number of building inspectors to strengthen compliance monitoring and improve response times. However, the city currently does not have the required budget allocation to fill all the vacant inspector positions…. Given the large number of properties under the responsibility of a single inspector, it is not feasible for them to physically monitor every property on a continuous basis.
“As a result, the two buildings located on the property were erected without the required municipal approvals, which constitutes illegal construction in terms of the applicable building regulations,” Modingoane explained.
In response to Monday’s tragedy, he said the city was conducting targeted compliance and inspection operations in the Ormonde area. At the same time, Modingoane was quick to emphasise that the city would not be held liable for structures that were erected without the necessary approvals, pointing out that investigations to establish what led to the building’s collapse were underway.
The Ormonde tragedy sparked a widespread response, with leaders from the national, provincial, and local governments visiting the site where the nine workers were crushed to death.
Some questions linger about the whereabouts of the developer, Tesmin Ghood, 71, whose company, New World Order 90, is responsible for the Ormonde project.
Modingoane told Sunday World there had not yet been direct engagement between the city and Ghood. The developer’s lawyer, Sinenhlanhla Mnguni, confirmed his client’s acknowledgement of the fatal building collapse at the site on March 2.
“New Order has appointed an independent professional team to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the collapse,” said Mnguni.
He pointed out that the investigation team also included structural engineers, health and safety practitioners, and other relevant specialists.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families affected by this tragic incident. New Order is committed to providing appropriate support to the families of the deceased and to all those impacted,” he said.
The news of Ghood’s apparent disappearance emerged during the visit by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and public works minister Dean Macpherson.
Lesufi revealed that Ghood was not reachable by phone.
“It is not true that my client cannot be found,” Mnguni said.
Sunday World pressed him further to confirm whether the developer had at least met with the families of the deceased. In his response, Mnguni said that he was awaiting the client’s instructions to respond.
What has also come to light is that New World Order was using subcontractors for the construction of the building. Sunday World tracked down Michelle Ferreira and Gavin Anthony, who confirmed that the deceased were under their employ.
While visiting the site of the tragedy on Tuesday, Macpherson said that the trend of buildings that collapse pointed to deeper structural issues that should be urgently reviewed to improve safety and construction oversight.
He said that the investigation to establish the collapse of the building would be conducted by the Council for the Built Environment, an industry regulator which regulates professionals within the sector.
“As I have said before, we should never normalise the collapse of any building.”
Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) spokesperson Mbalenhle Dlamini said, “ECSA has appointed a structural engineer and has initiated an investigation probing the engineering aspects associated with this incident.”
At the same time, the family of one of the deceased workers, Amalio Timbe (38) from Mozambique, told Sunday World that the subcontractor had
given them some money towards funeral costs.
The CEO of another company involved in the project, Midvaal Steel’s Mario Stoltz, expressed his company’s thoughtfulness and condolences to the families of the deceased workers.
Stoltz also offered to contribute funds toward funeral costs.
