Collapse of buildings is not new
to Nigeria, neither is it only peculiar to Nigeria. Nevertheless, that will not
stop us from taking critical look at the situation and finding a solution to
it.
Collapse though can happen to any
kind of building, but the casualties that usually follow the collapse of multi-storey
buildings can be so terrible.
The collapse of storied buildings
in Nigeria usually goes along with it, casualties which can be more up to 20.
But what really motivates multi-storey
buildings?
Multistorey buildings are either
built because of social status. There are places you get to, and all you would
see are very high-rise buildings; so you wouldn’t want your building to be
unnoticeable amongst them.
Commercial viability of a location
can also make more people to build storied structures in the area because more
people would clamour for space in the area.
Some locations are routes to a lot
of places; so, high vehicular and human traffic is usually associated with such
places, hence more commercial activities, and thus, the need for high-rise
buildings.
There is always a tendency of man
habiting very close to water because of the opportunity of controlling the
waterways which can give opportunity for inter trade between nations. Their
closeness to water naturally gave room for shipping ports in these areas,
shipping port in turn promotes commercial activities, and commercial activities
naturally generates heavy human traffic, and human being requires shelter for
himself, his goods and services. So, buildings spring up in these places, and
this brings about competition for the very few available spaces. Hence to meet with
the demand, designers and building contractors will have to settle for multi-storey
buildings because of the increasing unending economic value of these places.
Now, the soils in these areas are
sandy and loose soil. They are not strong or compacted soils. Hence, the need
for building construction professionals is usually high here. For most of these
buildings, they dig long and strong piles foundation. However some few of these
buildings still collapse.
So, what causes the collapse of these
buildings?
(1) The first problem is
boycotting the professionals -
This issue had been over flogged
both in print media and electronic media but it still persists. There is also a
problem of egghead professionals that believe they know everything and are not
ready to take advice from a colleague. There are known cases like that, which
has turned awry.
(2) Contractors cutting corners -
Contractors trying to make gains
at the expense of the lives of the users of the building are another problem
that has to be tackled. There should be a check from policy makers to make sure
specification is thoroughly adhered to by contractors.
(3) Human activities on building -
As insignificant as the human
weight may seem to be; the moving up and down of the live loads and the dead
load contributes over time in no small measure in wearing down the building. It
will take long time though, but houses also expire, and in the case of the
types of buildings we have in Nigeria, their lifespan is shorter than those in the
civilized world.
(4) Inadequate foundation -
This is the most important part of
a building. Unfortunately, a lot of people are not giving adequate attention to
this and it is causing more problems. A registered Structural Engineer is very
important to you if you are planning on building a strong and solid multi-storey
building.
(5) Ageing Building -
Many do not know that buildings
also have their life span. Most of the buildings in Lagos Mainland have spent
25 years and above; despite that, they are of shallow foundation and very low
quality materials are used for them. As you lay your bed, so you shall lie on
it. If you use low quality materials in building, and thereby thinking that you
will cut cost, then also be expecting to park out of that building very soon.
