Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG), Lagos Chapter has criticised the erroneous reportage of the building collapse incident at 11, Oba Idowu Oniru Road, Oniru Estate, Victoria Island, Lagos on Sunday, September 4, 2022.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Adekemi Okusaga, the guild said the collapsed building was referred to severally in the media as a seven-storey building while in fact, it was a nine-storey building.
According to the guild, the importance of appropriate determination of the height of a collapsed building cannot be overemphasised. It added that the wrong description is a misnomer that has grave implications.
The statement read in part, “The unfortunate incident of building collapse at 11, Oba Idowu Oniru Road, Oniru Estate, Victoria Island, Lagos on Sunday, 4th September 2022 has again exposed the inaccuracy and lack of understanding in the use of the terminology, ‘storey’ in this part of the world.
“In the post-mortem analysis or investigation, knowing the actual number of storeys would show if the building exceeded or complied with the approved building plan or the height restrictions in the model city plan of that area ( density regulation ). Moreover, the number of storeys is a critical variable in the structural calculation and analysis of loadings exerted on the foundation of the collapsed building.”
The guild further said there was a significant difference in the sizes, types and details of the foundations expected to carry a seven-storey building and the specifications for a nine-storey building, with varying degrees of soil bearing capacity.
It noted that in building lexicology, the meaning and use of storey are constant and the same across the world.
“The need to correct the constant wrong use of ‘Storey’ in Nigeria is very important,” the statement added.
