Causes of collapse of buildings in Mombasa County a case of Mombasa Island-Kenya

Abstract

Abstract: Building collapsing essentially refers to the structural failure of a building or failure to transmit both imposed and non-imposed loading to the ground evenly without any problem. This can also mean the inability of the ground to carry or resist the loadings from the building where the loadings surpass the allowable loading of the ground causing uneven settlement of the building. This study is aimed at establishing the causes that lead to building failure or collapsing that usually leads to loose of lives and enormous investments. The study is carried out in Mombasa Island as guided by the following five specific objectives, to determine the kind of materials used in construction that lead to collapse of building, to determine the construction processes used that lead to collapse of buildings, to determine the role played by the municipal council that lead to collapse of building, to establish the role played by building developers that lead to collapse of building. The literature review showed how building failures happened, in other words, it showed the courses of building failure and how they were avoided, it also looked at the importance of quality control in construction industry. It also looked at the effects of the building failure to the economic growth of our country. The research design that was used was in such a way that, simple random sampling was applied in each of the specialized building group and people in construction industry in Mombasa city. The sample which runs in thousands, the sample size was in the range of 5% to 20%, but for a population that is in hundreds the sample size was 50%. The size of the target population was 120 people. To ensure data validity and reliability, the researcher conducted a pre-test of the data collection instrument among the individuals that work in the construction industry about the courses of collapse of building with the aim of ensuring that, the questions were well understood by all the respondents. Likewise, simple random sampling in each of the construction team member plus the developers was conducted to ensure that, each respondent had an equal opportunity to be included in the study. The study established that materials used in construction, professionals who were engaged in the building industry, the building procedure, the developers and the municipal council in Mombasa Island contributes immensely towards the collapse of buildings in Mombasa County, The study therefore recommends that all materials to be tested before being used for construction by an authorized body, the government to train more professionals in the building industry and send them to this Island. The government should formulate laws and regulation on building procedures and defaulters to be penalized for any law breaking. Building developer's to follow all laid down construction regulation and stopped to interfere with the construction process