By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of Human Settlements Thembi Simelane released the findings of the forensic investigation into the collapse of the Neo Victoria building in George, Western Cape.
On May 6, 2024, the Neo Victoria project, a residential building that was still under construction, collapsed without warning, claiming the lives of 34 of the 62 construction workers on site.
Many of the survivors were also critically injured. Rescue efforts to extract survivors from the debris continued for about a week after the collapse.
In the aftermath, multiple investigations were initiated to determine the cause of the collapse and to hold accountable those responsible. The Department of Employment and Labour took over the site to conduct a formal inquiry, with additional investigations launched by provincial authorities and law enforcement agencies.
The NHBRC conducted the investigation and focussed largely on the failures of inspectors and internal controls insofar as the council is concerned.
The NHBRC is a regulatory body of the home building industry, with a mandate to protect the interests of housing consumers and to ensure that builders comply with the prescribed building industry standards.
The report was concluded earlier this year and submitted to the department of human settlements (DHS) on 26 March.
According to Simelane, the report has revealed non-compliance with regulatory standards and blatant safety violations.
“Based on the outcome of the investigation, the NHBRC has since suspended the officials who have been mentioned in the report to enable further investigation into the matter. We have since handed the report to the law enforcement agencies,” Simelane said.
She confirmed that five officials implicated in the incident were currently suspended and were facing potential criminal charges, pending separate law enforcement investigations. The charges that will be levelled against them include dereliction of duty, misconduct, negligence, dishonesty, and misrepresentation in official inspection reports.
“There were some underlying [indications] that the systems were not just overlooked because of inefficiencies.
There were creeping ins of man-made deficiencies . . . It can be that, for example, the municipality was unable to submit a form of its own overseeing of the building. They carry the responsibilities,” Simelane said.
Further, there was unlawful use of another official’s credentials to enrol the first phase of the project, reflecting a breakdown in the NHBRC’s internal control system.
The inspections carried out by NHBRC personnel were marked by several lapses and failures that significantly compromised regulatory oversight. One official conducted an initial inspection eight working days after project enrolment, exceeding the five-day window period stipulated in the NHBRC’s inspection protocol. Inspection reports also included units that had not yet been built.
The investigation found several breaches of Occupational Health and Safety standards on the construction site.These included failure to address safety concerns, resignation of the safety consultant, and absence of occupational health and safety provisions in NHBRC procedures.
The NHBRC’s inspection homes procedures lack clear guidelines for addressing occupational health and safety violations, leaving inspectors without the mandate to enforce safety compliance.
There were gaps in the competency of key personnel on site. Unqualified individuals without formal engineering or quantity surveying qualifications were involved in critical roles such as inspections.
The competency of the appointed technical manager was found to be lacking. The investigation revealed that oversight and assessment of the manager’s qualifications were not thoroughly reviewed at the time of appointment. This played a major role in the technical missteps observed during the construction.
The geotechnical report did not include crucial information such as trial pit locations, Dynamic Cone Penetrometer test results, and geological maps. These are essential for proper foundation design and site preparation.
The investigation revealed that the George municipality approved the building plans only after construction had already commenced, meaning the work on site began before approvals were finalised.
George Municipality’s head of communications Chantel Edwards said the municipality has not received a copy of the report under discussion and could not comment on the contents thereof. “The investigation is in the hands of the SAPS,” reads the statement.
It gave a broad overview of the municipality’s function and responsibility regarding building plans and regulations.
The municipality confirms approval of a five-storey building plan for Erf 15098 on July 6, 2023, after rezoning and site plan approvals in 2021 and 2022. “The municipality does not have evidence alluding that the construction had commenced prior to approval of the building plan,” reads the statement.
Furthermore, it noted that the NHBRC, not the municipality, handles project registration and inspections.
Edwards said a 2023/24 audit had found no significant issues with its building control, adding that the municipality has given its full support to the inquiries by the police, the Engineering Council of South Africa and the NHBRC.