Ramaphosa visits George as site operations draw to a close

Nearly two weeks after the collapse of a partially built five-storey apartment building in George, Gugulethu Khonono could not help but stare at a picture on his phone — the only link he still had to his niece, Sihle Mehlo.

Mehlo, from George, was studying to be an electrician when she died in the implosion.

But the 28-year-old’s smile captured in the photograph is a constant reminder to the family of the future she will never have.

“We are devastated, but we are starting to accept that our girl is gone,” the grieving uncle said.

“She made us proud, she loved education and wanted to empower herself.

“It’s very sad that she died in such a tragic way.”

He said a memorial would be held on Tuesday.

Mehlo was one of the 81 construction workers, mostly foreigners, who were in the building when it came crashing down on Monday last week.

The death toll stands at 33, while 19 others remain unaccounted for.

George fire services and disaster management head Neels Barnard said they were hoping to complete operations at the site by Friday.

Khonono was collecting a food parcel in the community hall on Thursday — the same day President Cyril Ramaphosa visited the scene of the disaster to pay his respects.

Addressing the crowd, Ramaphosa said he was satisfied with the response to the disaster, and called for the investigation to be fast-tracked.

The president had met the survivors, the victims’ families and the rescue workers who have barely slept since the disaster struck.

Moments before his arrival, a mangled mini skid steer was extracted from the debris.

Ramaphosa was accompanied by Western Cape premier Alan Winde, international relations and co-operation deputy minister Alvin Botes and Western Cape local government MEC Anton Bredell.

ANC supporters lined the streets.

Western Cape disaster management head Colin Deiner took the president to the site of the tragedy.

“I’ve just had a meeting with the families of those who lost loved ones, and some who [are still] in hospital,” Ramaphosa said.

“It was a very sad moment to talk to them and try to give them strength and support by assuring them that the government will do everything we can to [lessen their burden].”

He said though sad, he was touched to see how the tragedy had brought the close-knit community together.

“Where a big catastrophe has befallen our people in George, my heart has been lightened by the effort that is going into dealing with this,” he said.

“I’m satisfied that as South Africa we are able to deal with disasters in the most effective way.”

Asked if all the contractors involved had the correct documentation to work in South Africa, Ramaphosa said their papers would be looked at “very closely”.

“Some of the documentation is under the rubble now, and some may not have had documentation.

“All that will be properly investigated,” he said.

“When it comes to repatriation, we are fortunate to have a number of organisations in our country [to assist].”

Ramaphosa said numerous role players were involved, including the South African Human Rights Commission.

Meanwhile, Delvin Safers, who was trapped under the rubble for 25 hours, said he longed for a night free of nightmares.

“Hearing about the others who did not make it broke my soul,” he said on Thursday.

Since his rescue, Safers said he was battling to find peace.

When he is not thinking about the horrifying events, he is bombarded with people asking him to tell his story.

“The first few hours while trapped I was numb,” he said.

“Then came the pain, a dull ache from head to toe, and the struggle to breathe. I could feel my body weakening as they worked to get me out. Part of me just wanted to give in, but another part clung to life.

“I just want this to be over so we can all heal.”

Earlier this week, public works and infrastructure minister Sihle Zikalala alleged there had been early signs of problems with the development.

He claimed the main contractor, Liatel Developments, was not registered with the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB).

“The main contractor is not registered with the CIDB as it is not a requirement in terms of the current regulations for contractors executing projects for private sector clients,” Zikalala said at the time.

Zikalala said the Engineering Council of South Africa had previously received two complaints against one of the registered people on the project, with one being probed and dismissed in 2019, and the other lodged in December 2023 still under way.

The building site in Victoria Street is owned by Neo Victoria Developments and managed by Neotrend Developments and East Africa Development.

Liatel handled construction, while Mitchell and Associates provided structural and civil engineering services.

Deon van der Westhuizen Architects served as the project architect, with Matla Quantity Surveyors managing the quantity surveying.

Health and safety was overseen by 4 Front Safety and Security Consultants, while Clinkscales Maughan-Brown handled the electrical engineering, and fire engineering was managed by Duane Hodges Consulting Engineer.

In a lengthy statement, Liatel director Theuns Kruger said the company was co-operating with the ongoing search, rescue and recovery operations.

“Liatel has expressed its sympathies with the families and the victims of this tragedy, and has had resources deployed to the disaster site,” Kruger said.

“Liatel ensured it had representatives at the site to assist with the rescue efforts, and in unravelling the facts of what caused the building to collapse.

“There are not enough answers at this stage for all the questions that surround this tragedy.”

He said the questions from the surviving victims and all the families would be answered in the “days, weeks and months to follow”.

“Liatel’s personnel on site have been focused on assisting the rescue operations.

“Liatel is aware the identification of the victims who tragically lost their lives is still under way.

“At this time, Liatel makes the firm commitment to co-operate with the ongoing operations.

“It further gives its unwavering commitment to the authorities conducting the crucial investigation into this disaster and, vitally so, will reach out to all the victims and the families when the time to do so arrives.”

He said they also needed a better understanding of what had occurred.

“Our deepest sympathies and thoughts remain with the victims and their families, and our unreserved gratitude to every single person involved with the rescue and recovery efforts, including the George community who have shown incredible kindness and solidarity with all those affected.”

Advocate Chris Roos, who specialises in engineering and construction law, said investigating a disaster of this magnitude could take between 18 months to two years to establish the causes before a civil claim could be formulated and quantified.

In addition, he said the insurers would want to wait for full certainty with regard to liability before honouring a claim which would be subject to court processes and possibly years of litigation.