The Badalona City Council (Barcelonès Nord) was forced yesterday to order the eviction of the sixth block of flats in the block between Àusias March, Llefià and Canigó streets. Yesterday marked one month since the tragic collapse in which three people lost their lives. The last eviction occurred in building 118 on Àusias March Street after detecting “gravity cracks” of the so-called “crosses” that greatly weaken the roof. Despite this, the technicians are hopeful and do not believe that it is necessary to demolish any building.
The technical inspection contracted by the City Council yesterday detected in the building “the most serious cracks that we have seen so far” in the buildings inspected. “They are cracks that cross the roofs and go in different directions,” explained the mayor, Xavier Garcia Albiol, who warned of the risk it posed for residents. The cracks have been located on six floors of the building.
Yesterday’s is the sixth building evacuated in the Raval neighborhood of Badalona since the building number 9 on Canigó Street collapsed on February 6, causing three fatalities. Due to the appearance of cracks, numbers 5, 7 and 11 of Canigó Street, adjacent to the one that collapsed, and numbers 116 and 118 of Àusias March Street, perpendicular to the first of the damaged buildings, have progressively had to be evacuated due to the appearance of cracks.
Still shocked by the tragedy, neighbors received good news yesterday. “We are beginning to feel calmer because the technicians explain to us that everything is going well,” said Núria, a neighbor at number 7 Canigó Street. In addition, they know that the architects initially stated that the load-bearing walls are in good condition. All of this indicates that it will not be necessary to demolish any block of flats, although it is certain that they will have to undergo extensive repairs.
The Badalona council has not waited for the committed help of the Generalitat and the next day it hired a specialized company that has sent four teams made up of architects and workers to the area to visit the homes to carry out tastings and analyze the structures. So far they have detected situations that must be resolved due to their danger, such as apartments in which a wall was removed or overweight attics due to domestic gardens or additional rooms. The cost of these inspections exceeds 300,000 euros.
The mayor revealed that he hopes to have the report on all the inspections at the end of next week, since he expects that the visits to 440 affected homes have been completed, of which only 140 remain to be reviewed. The second phase will involve delivering the diagnosis to each owner in which the actions that must be carried out to repair the deficiencies and guarantee structural safety will be specified. The cost of the works will be borne by the owners of the apartments, so it is not ruled out that help lines will be opened to face the repairs.
Meanwhile, the roofs of the homes are secured with “aerial struts, since they are less invasive for residents,” detailed Territori councilor Daniel Gracia. Regarding the origin of the cracks, the mayor does not link them to the collapse of the block. “These are cracks that already existed but had not been detected.” After securing the floors, the most decisive tests will be carried out, such as load tests on the floors, an operation that must be carried out in a specialized laboratory, in which the state of the materials used for construction will also be evaluated.
Precisely, during the plenary session held on Tuesday, the opposition councilors proposed investigating whether there are more housing developments built with ceramic materials in Badalona. “Now we have not detected buildings of this type, but we must open the focus to the rest of the city,” Gracia proposed.
At the moment, there are only four families, totaling 19 people, staying in hotels or establishments run by social services. In total, six buildings have been evacuated, which represents 120 homes. Until yesterday, some of the homes in blocks 1 to 15 of Canigó Street and 2 to 4 of Llefi Street had been shored up and it is expected that in a matter of weeks they will be able to return to their homes.
