South Africa

Shrouded in silence - key information on May 6 George building collapse still remains secret

George Municipality acting manager, Dawie Adonis. (Photo: George Municipality / Wikipedia)

6 Nov 2024

Six months after the complete collapse of a five-storey, luxury residential property development in George which cost the lives of 34, the disaster remains shrouded in silence.

This week, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde’s office, which was handed on 1 August a preliminary investigation into the staggering George building collapse, responded that the consolidation of various probes was still being finalised.

In July, George Municipality acting manager Dawie Adonis rejected an application by community newspaper publisher Group Editors for copies of the building plans to be made public. The application was brought in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (Paia).

Adonis, in refusing to release documents relating to 75 Victoria development, referred to Section 36 of Paia claiming the plans contained “trade secrets and financial and commercial, scientific and technical information” which would cause harm to the financial interests of those implicated.

Thirty-four people died in the building collapse and 28 escaped death, but many survivors sustained serious injuries.

Read more: George building disaster — survivors ‘left to fend for themselves’ with ‘terrifying flashbacks’ and still no payout

Premier Alan Winde of the Western Cape. (Photo: Gallo Images / Brenton Geach)

Since the collapse of the 42-apartment block with basement parking and a rooftop garden, the Engineering Council of South Africa (Ecsa) has been roused to action campaigning to safeguard the professionalisation of the sector.

“The unfortunate and heartbreaking incident has further highlighted the significance of ensuring that our engineers are registered, that they continuously educate and empower themselves, and conduct their engineering activities responsibly,” wrote Basetsana Khoza, editor of the council’s latest quarterly publication.

Atholl Mitchell, the Paarl-based engineer who signed off on the plans for the project, was placed on precautionary suspension by Ecsa a month after the accident.

In its latest bulletin, Ecsa provides an update on George informing members that it had indeed received two complaints in 2018 about “a Registered Person [Mitchell]” and had brought these before the Investigating Committee. A decision not to proceed was made two years later in 2020.

In December 2023, a further complaint had been lodged, which was still under investigation by the Improper Conduct team.

The council has since ordered engineering reports on all projects related to Mitchell’s company, Mitchell & Associates, over the past three years.

George Municipality acting manager Dawie Adonis. (Photo: George Municipality / Wikipedia)

Questions

Serious questions remain surrounding the development and its progress through various municipal processes from 2020 when first applications for deviations were made, to the approval of the plans, to the commencement of construction in April, to the collapse a month later.

A day after Winde received the report on 1 August, journalist Alida de Beer of the George Herald noted that three directors of Neo Victoria Developments, the developers of 75 Victoria, have resigned since the collapse of the building.

These included Dylan Brockway and Alwyn Gey van Pittius, who both resigned on 13 May, a week after the collapse, and Johannes Swanepoel on 18 June. The only remaining member of the group now is Carel Swanepoel, according to the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission.

Ecsa announced also that it had revised its entire organisational structure, including the development of governance structures as well as the appointment of two new executives. DM

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