The shrinking of the South Africa George building, which killed 34 was prevented, says the minister

The collapse of the building, which killed 34 construction workers and dozens injured in the West Cape province last year, was “completely preventable,” says the South Africa government.

A new tragedy report reveals that serious safety concerns have been raised long before the partially built five -storey apartment block in the city of George in May 2024.

Minister of Public Affairs Dean McPherson said the collapse was the result of many failures, including the use of non -standard materials, structural cracks and visible gaps.

“There were a number of red flags that are constantly rising on this project,” MacPherson said apparently.

Some of the defects were discovered a year before the collapse. The health and safety employee even resigned in protest, but the work continued, the report found.

“The job had to stop,” MacPherson said.

He added that these signs were a chance to look back, but instead the problems with the building were “covered”.

Workers say they feel vibrations in the structure and have been told to conceal holes with sand and non -standard concrete, the report reveals.

After what the minister described as “emotional and painful” private encounter with survivors and victims, he called for criminal accountability for those who were established to have been negligent.

A police investigation was underway, but no arrests were made.

Many survivors are still facing trauma, medical accounts and struggling to put food on the table, MacPherson said.

Delvin Safers Electricity was nailed under a ton of concrete and fenced metal for 28 hours. He sent voice notes to his family, believing he could die.

His colleague was killed immediately when the concrete fell on them.

After his rescue, Safers told the BBC that he did not notice any warning signs, but believes that if shortcuts are accepted during construction, then the responsible “should be held accountable”.

He did not attend the minister’s briefing, but his father Deon, who did it, told the BBC that he was impressed with the report.

“We want justice,” he said, adding that his son had not received compensation

Another survivor of the disaster, Elelons, tearfully told the local media that her life has changed in the last year.

She lost a lot of teeth, struggles to eat and was harassed. She appealed money from well -to -date.

MacPherson has promised to introduce regulations to improve construction supervision and reform outdated legislation.

The probe was conducted by the Council on the established environment and a parallel investigation by the South Africa Engineering Council.