Rio building collapse: where is the oversight?
鈥� A version of this post ran on the author's blog, Riorealblog.com. The views expressed are the author's own.
When an illegal gas canister exploded one morning last October at the downtown Fil茅 Carioca restaurant, killing four and聽bringing down much of the building it was housed in, residents of Rio de Janeiro discovered just how spotty safety inspections are.
鈥淭he firemen aren鈥檛 equipped to inspect every building,鈥� fire chief S茅rgio Sim玫es O Dia. 鈥淲e inspect in response to reports of irregularities鈥�.
After that tragedy, the mayor and the fire department .
This week a , destroying all three. Six bodies have been recovered and 24 people are missing. So far, it appears that unreported renovations may have according to Brazilian newspaper Terra (in Portuguese).
Social media chatter has brought to light a shocking truth: in Rio de Janeiro (and perhaps all of Brazil?), renovations are the full responsibility of the project engineer and the building owner. No government inspections are carried out 鈥� except for when the building first goes up.
鈥淵ou鈥檇 need thousand of inspectors, paid with citizens鈥� taxes. Do you want to pay more taxes for this? Or an inspection fee?鈥� asked one Facebook thread commenter.
An architect, in response to the same thread, said the city is responsible for keeping every new building鈥檚 original plans, for reference during renovation 鈥� but that he鈥檚 found these blueprints are often unavailable.
In many countries, inspection fees are indeed charged when renovation takes place, for everything from commercial construction to home improvement. This involves bureaucracy,聽but insurance companies don鈥檛 insure uninspected work. The process is meant to safeguard the public at large, and in the case of an accident, facilitates investigations, prosecution, and legal decisions regarding blame and compensation.
Who will pay for the damages and suffering in this week鈥檚 tragic case? So far, the State Social Aid Secretariat has said it will pay burial costs for the dead, and the state council of engineers mentioned that the engineer in charge of the unreported work could lose his license. Insurance hasn鈥檛 been mentioned 鈥� and neither the owner鈥檚 name nor that of the engineer in charge of the work has been made public.
Up until last month when bus corridors were instituted in Rio de Janeiro, it was a city where one could bring a municipal bus to a stop anywhere at all, simply by raising a finger. More of a village, than a city.
But the village is in fact a city of 12 million people, boasting plans for grandeur with hammers, drills, and bulldozers. As the building progresses, as investment flows in, and tourists arrive, demand for city services and oversight is mushrooming. But not being met. When you Google the words聽inspe莽茫o de obras Rio de Janeiro, or construction inspection Rio de Janeiro, at the top of the page.
results in English.
In the last year Rio has seen exploding manhole covers, trolley, ferry, and bus accidents, metro stoppages, and electrical blackouts, among other catastrophes.
Meanwhile, the city council plays almost no role in drafting public policy, and聽Mayor Eduardo Paes has focused on a constant 鈥渟hock of order鈥� campaign which started in 2009 to combat disorder in public spaces. This has included expanding and training the municipal guard, and prioritizing a crackdown on illegal parking and street vendors.
But it might just be time to create a task force to rethink the city鈥檚 antiquated building codes and zoning regulations鈥� and the way they are enforced. Otherwise, the grandeur could well remain in the realm of illusion.
--- Julia Michaels, a long-time resident of Brazil, writes the blog , which she describes as a constructive and critical view of Rio de Janeiro鈥檚 ongoing transformation.
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