•On November 17, a 6-storey building under construction collapsed in Ruaka.
•The incident that happened near the Fortune Club area left a couple dead after they were trapped in the rubble.
Image: ANDREW KASUKU
There have been increasing cases of buildings collapsing across the country leaving a trail of destruction and deaths.
A number of victims have been injured after they were trapped in the debris with leaders putting on the spot the engineers who constructed the building.
For the past month, three buildings have collapsed.
On November 17, a 6-storey building under construction collapsed in Ruaka. The incident that happened near the Fortune Club area left a couple dead after they were trapped in the rubble.
The incident happened just a day after a 7-storey building collapsed in Kasarani. One person died.
Last week, an eight-storey building collapsed at Kwa Ndege in Tassia, Embakasi. And in September, a 6-storey building under construction collapsed in the Kirigiti area claiming 5 lives. It is reported that the building was already suspended by Nairobi County
But experts claim the use of substandard materials and failure to involve certified engineers during construction have been highlighted as among the reasons buildings are collapsing.
Research done by NCA in 2018, revealed that the causes of collapsing of buildings were mainly due to technical issues such as substandard materials and lack of quality assurance.
Other factors were ignorance of the laws and regulations, inadequate laws, poor coordination, lack of proper material testing tools, and poor construction supervision, among others.
Engineer Johnson Matu from the Engineers Board of Kenya in an interview with the Star said certified engineers need to be involved in such projects.
“Unethical professionals are out there and do not take time to review the locality of the construction site in order to recommend appropriate design,” he said.
He recommends that before one starts building a house, one should carry out a Geo-Technical report on the type of soil.
The type of soil and water table beneath the ground largely plays a big role in determining the height of the building that can be put up.
“Carrying out a Geo-technical report is essential as this might also influence a change in the design of the building's foundation. Different soils exhibit different pressure withstanding capacity hence the need for a developer to put this into consideration,” he said.
Use standard construction materials
The engineer said construction materials in the market are of different standards and serve different types of buildings.
“This is the part where there is a huge compromise by developers as they have the ill mentality of they are saving money. Materials must be checked to see if they are of standard and mixing of concrete should be done to the right ratio.”
Give construction work more time
House owners need to give developers ample time to complete their work
“Developers should not be in a hurry because they are receiving pressure from owners to have it completed for occupation. Ensure you make him/her understand the building needs time for drying and adequate watering before proceeding to the next slab,” Engineer Matu said.
Dig deep foundations for high-rise buildings
Matu notes that strong and stable foundations definitely give the building a lasting standing.
"Depending on the height of the building the design foundation will be different for each.”
Ask for occupational license before renting a house
The rush that is commonly witnessed when one is occupying a house after a long hustle of ‘house hunting’ makes one forget it is important to ask for an occupational license while signing the Tenant Agreement.
“Occupational Licences are issued by the County Government or architect stating the building has been built professionally and thus safe for occupation,” Engineer Matu said.
Do not occupy houses marked ‘X’ by National Construction Authority
Marked houses by the National Construction Authority should serve as a warning to anyone occupying them or intending to.
“That should always trigger you to think beyond as that building is more or less condemned, shortcuts were either taken or something needs to be done to ensure the building does not collapse. It should therefore not be occupied.”