This Saturday, November 16, 2024, a tragedy mourned the economic capital of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam. The sudden collapse of a four-storey building in the bustling Kariakoo district has killed at least 16 people. This building, which housed several businesses and accommodated many people, became the scene of a large-scale rescue operation.
According to witnesses on site, many people are still missing. “I lost contact with my brother. He was in the building when it collapsed,” laments a shocked resident. Rescue teams, supported by volunteers, managed to extract more than 80 survivors from the rubble, but the chances of finding more people alive diminish over time.
Also read: Subsidence of a building in the Riviera Palmeraie: The cause is the careless construction of a neighboring building (Ministry)
Faced with this tragedy, the President of the Republic, Samia Suluhu Hassan, ordered an immediate audit of buildings in the Kariakoo district, known to be a vital commercial center of the city. She also asked police to check construction and ownership permits for the collapsed building to determine whether safety standards had been met.
Tanzania, currently in the middle of the rainy season, regularly faces this type of tragedy. Water weakens the foundations of buildings, particularly those that do not comply with safety standards. According to local experts, non-compliance with standards in building construction is a major cause of these frequent collapses.
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This Monday, November 18, some victims of the tragedy were buried in an atmosphere of pain and anger. Affected families are calling for concrete measures to strengthen infrastructure security and prevent such events from happening again. The collapse of this building highlights the urgency for Tanzania to review its building control policies. With rapid urbanization and high demand for real estate, Dar es Salaam must balance economic growth and public safety. The Kariakoo tragedy will be remembered as an urgent call to action.
Afriksoir
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