The National Building Review Board-NBRB has said that preliminary findings indicate that the collapse of building housing Loi-Lung Restaurant in Kansanga, was partially due to poor quality construction materials.
The commercial building located near Kampala International University (KIU), along Kansanga -Ggaba Road, Makindye division, Kampala collapsed around 5pm on Sunday when soccer supporters were reportedly inside, watching football.
Speaking to this website on Monday afternoon, Mr. Herbert Zziwa, the communications manager of NBRB said initial findings point out the use of substandard materials, as a one of the causes for the building collapse.
‘’Our team of experts including Engineers and Architects visited the scene in Kansanga and according to preliminary investigations the developer was trying to modify an existing bungalow structure into rental space which was not properly redesigned. It was also evident from the investigations that the developer was using poor quality material’’, said Ziwa, adding that the experts are trying to find out whether the redesign was with approvals from Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA).
He noted the details for the conclusive report would be released at a later date.
On Sunday, the Kampala Metropolitan Deputy Police Spokesperson Luke Owoyesigire confirmed that one person, Ayuer Mario, a South Sudanese national who was seriously injured and rescued by the Fire Prevention and rescue services, was pronounced dead on arrival at Mulago Hospital.
‘’Upon receiving this information the Police at Kabalagala, together with the fire prevention and rescue services, KCCA, and a team of detectives, immediately visited the scene. The area was cordoned off, and further examinations took place.The preliminary investigation has revealed that the building had an extension of a storey structure with two floors. All the victims were South Sudanese, and the restaurant was also for South Sudanese’’, said
Victims with minor injuries rescued by the community members were rushed to Mukwaya Hospital.
Housing in Kansanga is in high demand and unscrupulous developers often bypass regulations.