SIX workers were injured when an illegal building under construction in Longgang District collapsed early Monday, Chinese-language newspapers reported yesterday.
Three of the injured, who suffered fractures to the legs, were still in hospital. The other three with minor injuries had been discharged from hospital, the Southern Metropolis Daily said.
The six workers were on the third floor of the building on Longcheng Road in Shengping Community in Longcheng Subdistrict during the small hours of Monday when it collapsed.
We were told to build two floors in one night, said Lei Hongliang, 31, who suffered fractures to the left foot. It was usual to build one floor in about five days, so we were apparently racing against the clock, said Lei, who has been in the construction business for 11 years.
According the Daily which quoted an unidentified subdistrict official, the single story building was an illegal construction from the 1990s.
It had been ordered to be demolished four times in the past but remained there for various reasons, the official with the anti-illegal construction inspection office said.
The official said the property owner started adding to the top of the building at about 10 p.m. Sunday after anti-illegal construction inspection officers left.
The property owner whose identity was not disclosed and the contractor, who was identified as Huang, were detained for questioning, the official told the Daily.
Illegal buildings have long been an eyesore, particularly in Longgang and Bao an districts. According to official figures, there are still 293 million square meters of illegal buildings in Shenzhen, taking up 39 percent of all city construction.
Three months ago, an official in charge of illegal building crackdown in Longgang District was removed from his post for being involved in illegal construction.
(SD News)
