THE construction of a 36-story building in Barangay Hipodromo, Cebu City, has been partially suspended after an aluminum platform fell onto a house on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024.
Florante Catalan, head of the Cebu City Office of the Building Official (OBO), said the suspension order, issued on Tuesday, Aug. 27, affects only the section of the building where an aluminum platform fell.
Catalan said the aluminum platform came from a floor between the 16th and 20th floor.
The OBO chief said the rest of the construction site is allowed to continue its interior work, but all exterior operations have been halted.
“Work cannot resume in the area where the accident happened,” Catalan said in a mix of Cebuano and English during an interview with the Cebu City Public Information Office.
“The rest of the building can still be worked on indoors, but exterior works are suspended due to safety hazards,” he added.
Investigation showed that the incident occurred due to the absence of safety nets, a violation of construction safety protocols.
Catalan said work in the affected area will only resume after the building’s team involved in mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire Protection and safety officer submit an incident report and propose mitigation measures.
“We need to prioritize safety measures before allowing any work to continue in that area,” Catalan said.
This is not the first safety incident at this construction site.
In July 2023, OBO suspended the construction work due to similar complaints from residents about falling objects. That suspension was lifted on Aug. 1 in the same year.
Hipodromo Barangay Captain Ruperto Bacolod said settlement discussions were ongoing between the contractor and the affected families. The exact number of impacted households has not yet been confirmed. / CDF