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Partly collapsed building causing alarm in Bintaro
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Unsightly, unsafe: A passerby examines a partially collapsed building in Bintaro, South Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday. Construction of the building began in 1995, but came to a halt during the 1998 economic crisis. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
P
eople living and working near an abandoned, partly constructed, high-rise building in Bintaro, South Tangerang, have expressed fears about the safety of the building.
The building, whose lower stories collapsed in June, has begun to lean to one side and its structure has deteriorated badly.
Feri Ivany, 24, a security guard at the Heritage factory outlet, located just over 100 meters from the building, said he was worried that the building could collapse again at any moment.
“I am always anxious that if the building collapses again we could be hit by the debris,” he said.
Four stories of the lower part of the building collapsed on June 2, shrouding the vicinity in dust although no one was injured in the incident.
A 25-year-old man who preferred not to give his name said he always made an effort to be vigilant while working at a nearby row of shop-houses.
Developer Jaya Property began construction of the building in 1995 but work came to a halt following the 1998 monetary crisis. The building is now owned by the Panin Bank Group.
“My boss received a notification letter saying that the building will be demolished at the end of this month,” Feri said.
Acting head of the South Tangerang City Planning, Building and Housing Agency Edi Malonda was quoted by kompas.com as saying that the South Tangerang administration had approved the Panin Bank Group’s plan to demolish the building.
“The [demolition] plan has been approved and we’re now just waiting for the building to be demolished by Panin Bank,” Edi said.
He added that his agency, however, was still having discussions with the group on the technicalities of the demolition to ensure the safety of the surrounding environment.
Urbanist Marco Kusumawijaya said that as the building was constructed using concrete its demolition should be carried out by a certified demolition company using explosives.
The certified company, he said, would be able to bring down the building with a controlled explosion, which would safely limit the fall of debris to a specific area. (sha)
