Building collapse in Rio - A wake-up call for expats

Yesterday's tragic collapse of three commercial buildings in the center of Rio should serve as a wake-up call to all expats living and working in any major Brazilian city, not just in Rio. The scenario could have been far worse if the collapse had taken place earlier in the day when the buildings were fully occupied or if they had been residential buildings.

None of us are immune from such disasters. Despite the fact that Brazil is a country that an over-abundance of laws and regulations, there is little if any regulatory checking done to enforce compliance. The very ominpresence of these laws often serves only to encourage avoidance. It now appears that the collapse was probably caused by clandestine structural reforms taking place in the 20 floor structure which gave way, taking the other two smaller buildings with it as it came down.

The practice of making "irregular" structural changes to existing buildings is commonplace all over Brazil and is done to avoid the bureaucracy involved in obtaining permits and the costs involved for structural engineers, which are required for such projects. If you live or work in any building that was constructed more than five or ten years ago you really have no way of knowing if any structural changes have been made, how many or by whom. Scary stuff. The problem is made only worse by the fact that most Brazilians, by nature, do not complain about or report irregularities; and by the prevailing attitude they have "any problem ignored long enough will resolve itself". Don't buy into either of those situations... you are putting yourself at risk.

Another serious problem is a lack of ongoing preventative maintenance in many buildings.

If you live or work in an older building, especially one having several floors, there are some warning signs that you should be alert for.

1. Water infiltration / Mould or Lime deposits on walls or ceilings - These indicate infiltration that can seriously weaken the structure of concrete buildings and rusting of any reinforcing steel materials.

2.  Crumbling concrete or brickwork - This can be a sign of something as simple as the effects of the building settling or it can be a warning of more serious sstructural problems.

3. Structural cracks - Structural cracks in brick and concrete buildings should be carefully monitored. If they get larger or spread they are a sign of real trouble.

4. Containers for construction/demolition waste (Dumpsters). You can't go anywhere in a major city in Brazil without finding dumpsters on almost every street. They are more than just a nuisance because they occupy valuable and limited parking space, they are also your tip-off that structural reforms are happening. Many of these may be done clandestinely without any kind of control. You should make an effort to find out as much as you can about what is going on if structural changes are being made to a building where you live or work. Do not assume that just because the city has granted a permit for the dumpster to be in the street that the necessary permits and engineering reports for the work are also in place, city departments rarely corelate this information or communicate well between departments.

If you notice any of the previous warning signs in your workplace or residence bring them to the immediate attention of your supervisor or apartment building administrator and demand that they be checked out as soon as possible and ascertain that proper permits have been obtained. If you get no satisfactory answers or it appears that your warning has gone unheaded and no action is being taken an anonymous call to Civil Defense explaining your concerns and requesting an inspection (vistoria) will certainly get somebody's attention and prompt action. Civil Defense can be reached by making a free call from any telephone to 199.