Why Plateau School Two-storey Building Collapsed – FG Panel Reveals

The Federal Government panel constituted to probe the collapsed two-storey building of Saint School, Jos, Plateau State, has revealed that the physical observation of the building looked distressed, adding that weak materials were used for the building.

The preliminary report of the panel specifically stated that the quality of the concrete used to construct the two-storey building was in doubt, stressing that there was no boundary between the concrete and the steel reinforcement just as the slab reinforcement anchorage provided for the structure was inadequate.

These were contained in the preliminary report on the incident on the two-storey building housing Saint Academy, located at the Busa Buji community in the Jos North Local Government Area of the state which collapsed last week Friday killing 22 persons with 154 others trapped but, later rescued and evacuated to various hospitals.

The Director General of the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute, Prof Samson Duna, who stated these while briefing journalists on the report of the panel, chaired Prof O.F. Job of the Building Department at the University of Jos, further said that the quality of concrete was in doubt particularly as there was no boundary between the concrete and the steel reinforcement.

According to Duna; “The slab reinforcement anchorage provided was inadequate. The sizes of the footing (foundation) provided were lesser than the required number (1200 mm X 1200mm).

Prof Duna therefore tasked government and other professional bodies in the construction industry to insist on integrity tests on all distressed buildings, especially those around the collapsed building site.

The Director General noted that the country had continued to experience building collapse owing to lack of regular inspections and penalties for non-compliance, adding that from available records on building collapse incidents across the country, no one had been sanctioned for negligence.

Duna canvassed for collaboration among stakeholders, including government agencies, professionals, and the public, to share knowledge and global best practices.

He assured that a comprehensive report of the probe of the collapsed building will be presented after the completion of investigation.