The restaurant that collapsed this Thursday in Palma and caused four deaths had just been renovated this winter, according to residents of the area, a point confirmed by the deputy mayor of Tourism of the Palma City Council, Javier Bonet, to IB3 Ràdio. . One of the points where the works were carried out is, precisely, the terrace of the premises, which is the part that collapsed and dragged down the rest of the building. For now, it is unknown how many people were on the roof at the time of the collapse and whether this space could be open to the public, something that is not clear at this time.
Bonet has assured that the premises had all the activity permits, but has also announced that the City Council will carry out an investigation to determine what could have caused the accident. In fact, it is being investigated whether the terrace could be used as a passage area since, apparently, it could not be used for this use. The deputy mayor has confirmed that the marble vault that covered the house collapsed and the technicians attribute the collapse to the excess weight in the building.
In any case, he has indicated that, for the moment, there are no plans to make a general inspection plan to see the state of all the buildings built with this material. The building had passed the Technical Building Inspection, but technicians from Palma City Council have been doing analyzes all morning to determine why the terrace collapsed. The City Council does not confirm, for now, whether the works had a license.
The Medusa Beach Club is located in the main tourist area of Palma, in Platja de Palma, and was originally a home where Mallorcans spent their summer holidays. The first line of the beach in this area still preserves these types of homes, built 50 or 60 years ago, but very few continue to have residential use and the majority are bars, restaurants or shops. Bonet has also explained that the premises had also been authorized to change use to become a bar-restaurant.
The dean of the College of Architects of Mallorca, Bernat Nadal, has explained that it is likely that the works carried out on the building could have helped the collapse. He has pointed out that collapses such as the one that caused the death of four people are usually related to being overweight and to the possibility that works have been carried out that affect the structure of the building, something that for now seems ruled out in this case, if He has also specified that more details will be known when the investigation is completed.
He has pointed out that the material used in the construction, marés, does not have to be the cause of the collapse if its use is appropriate as housing, but he has also specified that it has less load capacity than concrete. He has indicated that the investigation will determine whether construction elements, such as pavements or decorative elements, that weigh more and that have helped the building collapse were used in the works. The College has also begun its own investigation to collaborate with the authorities and has asked that no hypotheses be launched.