What some people had been warning for a long time now, about the unsuitability of old buildings and the irresponsible behavior of citizens renting these apartments to dozens of foreigners without any measures happened in Paphos yesterday morning.
Three balconies of an old building collapsed taking with them three people who are currently hospitalized in very serious condition at the Paphos Hospital.
https://in-cyprus.philenews.com/news/lo ... ke-domino/
Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
-
PhotoLady
- Posts: 2779
- Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2016 10:53 am
- Location: Where the river meets the sea
- Contact:
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
I read an article about this yesterday, posted on Facebook. The article didn't mention the building, neither did it show photos but some people were aware of the place.
The comments made at one point indicated they were not balconies but a shelf like structure so not meant to support people.
Seeing the photo of the remaining balcony, how would you know not to use it to sit or indeed, sleep on?
The comments made at one point indicated they were not balconies but a shelf like structure so not meant to support people.
Seeing the photo of the remaining balcony, how would you know not to use it to sit or indeed, sleep on?
"Have Camera, Will Travel"
-
memory man
- Posts: 5399
- Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2016 7:30 am
- Location: on top of ATLANTIS
- Contact:
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
Phedonos slams ‘greedy and criminal landlords’ after three injured in balcony collapse
The near fatal injuries sustained by three Nepalese workers as their third-floor balcony collapsed has caused outrage, with Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos slamming “greedy and criminal” landlords.
The two men aged 27 and 28, and a woman aged 29 were rushed to Paphos general hospital early on Friday morning by ambulance and remain there in in very serious condition.
They crashed through the two balconies below them – which also collapsed – as they appeared to have been sleeping outside, seeking relief from the heat. A parked car below was also destroyed by the debris.
Phedonos blamed the incident on “criminal and greedy” landlords who are exploiting poor migrant workers and asylum seekers, packing them into ‘dens’.
“These buildings not even suitable to be renovated, let alone rented out, they are only suitable for demolition but they [landlords] have turned them into gold mines,” he said.
“Up to eight, ten or even 15 foreigners are packed into a double or three-bedroom apartment and the landlord is getting €100 each – so getting up to €1,400 from an apartment which under normal circumstances they would not even get €200 for,” he hit out.
The Cyprus News Agency said the apartment block on Nikos Antoniades Street opposite Kennedy Square in central Paphos was old, with Phedonos adding that the derelict balcony collapsed at around 2:30am.
He said the other two balconies below them had broken the impact of the fall and that “we would be dealing with fatalities if there were people underneath”.
Moreover, he pointed out that there are 30 to 40 similar buildings in Paphos, or ‘dens’ as he referred to them.
In the specific apartment there were eight individuals residing, while another apartment in the same building is housing up to 14 individuals, Phedonos said.
The mayor further added that the specific balcony was often used to store gas cylinders and that he had protested the building’s shambolic state to the owner. The apartment block is over 40 years old and has not been maintained, he said.
Phedonos stressed that the situation with the migrants living in Paphos must be controlled the soonest and relevant measures be taken.
Authorities have faced criticism from the public for being aware of such dangerous dwelling but have seemingly failed to rein in the situation, with the issue being widespread.
In a statement, the fire service said it had been contacted by police about a collapsed balcony at 2.20am. Members of the police and fire service responded with a rescue team and vehicle.
“The rescue team carried out an extensive search in the ruins and the crushed car, without finding anyone else,” it said, adding that the investigation is being carried out in cooperation with police and the electro-mechanical service.
According to the relevant authorities, the balcony’s iron and concrete was corroded and ultimately collapsed.
The scientific and technical chamber’s (Etek) regional secretary Yiannis Koutsolemos said the process of maintenance checks cannot be left to the owner’s discretion.
“This building was a jewel in ‘82-83 and was in great condition. The responsible party for its maintenance is the owner and that is the problem,” he said.
“The major issue is that maintenance checks must be institutionalised and not be left to the owner’s discretion, much like MOTs in the case of vehicles. It’s a shame to lose lives because some process is not institutionalised,” he added.
The civil engineers’ association called on the government to swiftly update the laws so that regular inspection of buildings is required, with relevant certificates being issued.
The association argued that such a measure would act as a preventative policy, encountering weaknesses and dangerous buildings before they collapse; not afterwards.
Phedonas sounded the alarm in August 2020 when he toured similar properties following a series of complaints and reports to the police. At the time, he vowed to stamp out the problem.
He warned of the issue back then following pressure by the police and municipality, which showed him around ten shops of around 25 squares metres each converted into illegal accommodation for foreign workers and asylum seekers.
“There are groups of Cypriots, white-collar people with respectable jobs and families who are exploiting the situation,” Phedonos said at the time.
“The conditions in which some immigrants and refugees are forced to live are absolutely appalling and cannot be tolerated.”
The Paphos mayor also said that some of the landlords were further taking advantage of their tenants by using them as cheap labour for their businesses.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2022/07/08/thre ... in-paphos/
The near fatal injuries sustained by three Nepalese workers as their third-floor balcony collapsed has caused outrage, with Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos slamming “greedy and criminal” landlords.
The two men aged 27 and 28, and a woman aged 29 were rushed to Paphos general hospital early on Friday morning by ambulance and remain there in in very serious condition.
They crashed through the two balconies below them – which also collapsed – as they appeared to have been sleeping outside, seeking relief from the heat. A parked car below was also destroyed by the debris.
Phedonos blamed the incident on “criminal and greedy” landlords who are exploiting poor migrant workers and asylum seekers, packing them into ‘dens’.
“These buildings not even suitable to be renovated, let alone rented out, they are only suitable for demolition but they [landlords] have turned them into gold mines,” he said.
“Up to eight, ten or even 15 foreigners are packed into a double or three-bedroom apartment and the landlord is getting €100 each – so getting up to €1,400 from an apartment which under normal circumstances they would not even get €200 for,” he hit out.
The Cyprus News Agency said the apartment block on Nikos Antoniades Street opposite Kennedy Square in central Paphos was old, with Phedonos adding that the derelict balcony collapsed at around 2:30am.
He said the other two balconies below them had broken the impact of the fall and that “we would be dealing with fatalities if there were people underneath”.
Moreover, he pointed out that there are 30 to 40 similar buildings in Paphos, or ‘dens’ as he referred to them.
In the specific apartment there were eight individuals residing, while another apartment in the same building is housing up to 14 individuals, Phedonos said.
The mayor further added that the specific balcony was often used to store gas cylinders and that he had protested the building’s shambolic state to the owner. The apartment block is over 40 years old and has not been maintained, he said.
Phedonos stressed that the situation with the migrants living in Paphos must be controlled the soonest and relevant measures be taken.
Authorities have faced criticism from the public for being aware of such dangerous dwelling but have seemingly failed to rein in the situation, with the issue being widespread.
In a statement, the fire service said it had been contacted by police about a collapsed balcony at 2.20am. Members of the police and fire service responded with a rescue team and vehicle.
“The rescue team carried out an extensive search in the ruins and the crushed car, without finding anyone else,” it said, adding that the investigation is being carried out in cooperation with police and the electro-mechanical service.
According to the relevant authorities, the balcony’s iron and concrete was corroded and ultimately collapsed.
The scientific and technical chamber’s (Etek) regional secretary Yiannis Koutsolemos said the process of maintenance checks cannot be left to the owner’s discretion.
“This building was a jewel in ‘82-83 and was in great condition. The responsible party for its maintenance is the owner and that is the problem,” he said.
“The major issue is that maintenance checks must be institutionalised and not be left to the owner’s discretion, much like MOTs in the case of vehicles. It’s a shame to lose lives because some process is not institutionalised,” he added.
The civil engineers’ association called on the government to swiftly update the laws so that regular inspection of buildings is required, with relevant certificates being issued.
The association argued that such a measure would act as a preventative policy, encountering weaknesses and dangerous buildings before they collapse; not afterwards.
Phedonas sounded the alarm in August 2020 when he toured similar properties following a series of complaints and reports to the police. At the time, he vowed to stamp out the problem.
He warned of the issue back then following pressure by the police and municipality, which showed him around ten shops of around 25 squares metres each converted into illegal accommodation for foreign workers and asylum seekers.
“There are groups of Cypriots, white-collar people with respectable jobs and families who are exploiting the situation,” Phedonos said at the time.
“The conditions in which some immigrants and refugees are forced to live are absolutely appalling and cannot be tolerated.”
The Paphos mayor also said that some of the landlords were further taking advantage of their tenants by using them as cheap labour for their businesses.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2022/07/08/thre ... in-paphos/
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
Just seen that there has been a roof collapse at Tea for Two at the harbour . No details yet though.
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
Looks like a similar event above Tea for Two by the harbour.
Delayed earthquake damage perhaps?
Delayed earthquake damage perhaps?
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
Been in contact with a friend how works for them, there are 2 customers in a serious condition in hospital.
It looks like the over hang roof has collapsed on to the restaurant.
Hope they recover soon.
Paul.
It looks like the over hang roof has collapsed on to the restaurant.
Hope they recover soon.
Paul.
-
memory man
- Posts: 5399
- Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2016 7:30 am
- Location: on top of ATLANTIS
- Contact:
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
Phedonos tells interior ministry to ‘look in the mirror’ after balconies collapse
Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos has hit back at the interior ministry which on Saturday called on the municipality to assume its responsibilities after balconies on two buildings collapsed in the space of 24 hours, injuring a total of five people.
In a lengthy response, Phedonos told the ministry to look in the mirror. Not only had the government done nothing since 2019 when a building collapsed in Nicosia, but it was also aiding and abetting greedy landlords by allowing them to pack third-country nationals and asylum seekers into unsuitable buildings by paying the rent directly to the owners through the welfare department.
“Thousands of immigrants and political asylum seekers who are in Cyprus today are the best customers of some unscrupulous owners of unsuitable buildings and they receive significant incomes that they would not have under normal circumstances,” he said.
“In most cases the rents are paid to the landlords by the state itself through rent allowances so as a matter of principle, the minister of their interior has no authority to request information about the actions of the municipality. Instead, it would be good to fall back on the actions that he and the ministry should take to deal with the problem”.
In the early hours of Friday a third-floor balcony where three Nepalese nationals had been sleeping collapsed. The structure fell onto the second and first-floor balconies taking them with it. The three people were seriously injured. At noon on Saturday on Poseidon Avenue, a balcony collapsed onto the pergola of a restaurant, injuring two people.
The interior ministry later on Saturday blamed the municipality and called on it to account for failures to follow the buildings laws when it came to unsuitable structures.
Phedonos, in his response, said the ministry should therefore supply the necessary resources. He recalled the building collapse in Nicosia in February 2019 after which the ministry said it would work on amending legislation with the technical chamber Etek. He asked what had become of this.
He also said that in January, the municipality has issued two decrees prohibiting the use and occupancy of two buildings in the municipal area of Paphos. “However none of the involved state services cooperated with the municipality to evict the tenants, even though they were informed immediately, both in writing and verbally,” he said.
“In fact, some of these services continued to subsidise the rental of apartments in the buildings in question for the benefit of the owners while they knew about the declaration that the buildings in question were deemed unfit for habitation.”
The government, he said, made no effort to find suitable places to move the people who lived in these buildings, the vast majority of whom were asylum seekers or immigrants who receive benefits and rent allowances.
Despite this lack of action by the state, the municipality would go ahead and evict the people from the two buildings where the balconies collapsed.
“I publicly warn against assigning responsibility to the municipality of Paphos for the fact that approximately 300 men, women, including pregnant women and children, will be on the street,” he said.
Phedonos said that in the case of the first building the owners had failed within 24 hours as required by law to carry out the necessary measures to make it safer. On Saturday, it was the municipality that had take steps to make the building safer for passers by, at least, he said.
The owners and tenants, after being informed by the officials from the municipality and the mayor himself, refused to leave the building and an official from the welfare office was duly informed to ensure that at least the tenants of the three apartments from which the balconies collapsed were transferred to a hotel.
The municipal engineer has given a statement to police in order to investigate possible criminal responsibilities by the owners of the building who have been sent official notices to immediately appoint an architect to repair the buildings.
The owner of the second building on Poseidon Avenue is in Australia, the mayor said, and has not been located so far but the tenant on the ground floor, the restaurant, has taken every precaution to ensure that no one passing by is at risk, he said. “From a visual inspection by the municipal engineer, the building does not show any visible stability problems,” he said.
He called on the interior ministry without delay to proceed with new legislation to require all owners of buildings more than 30 years to be obliged to secure a certificate of suitability or face severe penalties.
“Without appropriate and modernised legislation, it is impossible to effectively deal with this problem, which will intensify in the coming years due to the aging of the buildings,” he said.
These incidents, he added, seem to be attributed on the one hand to bad practices of the past that allowed the use of inappropriate construction materials and on the other hand to the “irresponsible attitude” of the owners who literally “paint over the cracks”.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2022/07/10/phed ... -collapse/
Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos has hit back at the interior ministry which on Saturday called on the municipality to assume its responsibilities after balconies on two buildings collapsed in the space of 24 hours, injuring a total of five people.
In a lengthy response, Phedonos told the ministry to look in the mirror. Not only had the government done nothing since 2019 when a building collapsed in Nicosia, but it was also aiding and abetting greedy landlords by allowing them to pack third-country nationals and asylum seekers into unsuitable buildings by paying the rent directly to the owners through the welfare department.
“Thousands of immigrants and political asylum seekers who are in Cyprus today are the best customers of some unscrupulous owners of unsuitable buildings and they receive significant incomes that they would not have under normal circumstances,” he said.
“In most cases the rents are paid to the landlords by the state itself through rent allowances so as a matter of principle, the minister of their interior has no authority to request information about the actions of the municipality. Instead, it would be good to fall back on the actions that he and the ministry should take to deal with the problem”.
In the early hours of Friday a third-floor balcony where three Nepalese nationals had been sleeping collapsed. The structure fell onto the second and first-floor balconies taking them with it. The three people were seriously injured. At noon on Saturday on Poseidon Avenue, a balcony collapsed onto the pergola of a restaurant, injuring two people.
The interior ministry later on Saturday blamed the municipality and called on it to account for failures to follow the buildings laws when it came to unsuitable structures.
Phedonos, in his response, said the ministry should therefore supply the necessary resources. He recalled the building collapse in Nicosia in February 2019 after which the ministry said it would work on amending legislation with the technical chamber Etek. He asked what had become of this.
He also said that in January, the municipality has issued two decrees prohibiting the use and occupancy of two buildings in the municipal area of Paphos. “However none of the involved state services cooperated with the municipality to evict the tenants, even though they were informed immediately, both in writing and verbally,” he said.
“In fact, some of these services continued to subsidise the rental of apartments in the buildings in question for the benefit of the owners while they knew about the declaration that the buildings in question were deemed unfit for habitation.”
The government, he said, made no effort to find suitable places to move the people who lived in these buildings, the vast majority of whom were asylum seekers or immigrants who receive benefits and rent allowances.
Despite this lack of action by the state, the municipality would go ahead and evict the people from the two buildings where the balconies collapsed.
“I publicly warn against assigning responsibility to the municipality of Paphos for the fact that approximately 300 men, women, including pregnant women and children, will be on the street,” he said.
Phedonos said that in the case of the first building the owners had failed within 24 hours as required by law to carry out the necessary measures to make it safer. On Saturday, it was the municipality that had take steps to make the building safer for passers by, at least, he said.
The owners and tenants, after being informed by the officials from the municipality and the mayor himself, refused to leave the building and an official from the welfare office was duly informed to ensure that at least the tenants of the three apartments from which the balconies collapsed were transferred to a hotel.
The municipal engineer has given a statement to police in order to investigate possible criminal responsibilities by the owners of the building who have been sent official notices to immediately appoint an architect to repair the buildings.
The owner of the second building on Poseidon Avenue is in Australia, the mayor said, and has not been located so far but the tenant on the ground floor, the restaurant, has taken every precaution to ensure that no one passing by is at risk, he said. “From a visual inspection by the municipal engineer, the building does not show any visible stability problems,” he said.
He called on the interior ministry without delay to proceed with new legislation to require all owners of buildings more than 30 years to be obliged to secure a certificate of suitability or face severe penalties.
“Without appropriate and modernised legislation, it is impossible to effectively deal with this problem, which will intensify in the coming years due to the aging of the buildings,” he said.
These incidents, he added, seem to be attributed on the one hand to bad practices of the past that allowed the use of inappropriate construction materials and on the other hand to the “irresponsible attitude” of the owners who literally “paint over the cracks”.
https://cyprus-mail.com/2022/07/10/phed ... -collapse/
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
I like the Pathos mayor, not afraid to say it as it is.
-
cyprusmax47
- Posts: 5207
- Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2016 10:10 am
- Location: Paphos area since 1982
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
He is really a nice person. I met him a week ago at the Timi Fish Tavern when he sat on the next table, enjoying his fish lunch before leaving the country from the nearby Paphos airport....
Max
-
The Aquila
- Posts: 1066
- Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2019 11:12 am
Re: Three balconies of a building in Paphos collapsed like domino
I drove past the building where the 3 balconies collapsed today and the remaining balconies now have supports under them from street level.
