Larnaca, Cyprus. Owners of dangerous and neglected buildings were urged on Tuesday to carry out immediate repair and maintenance work after a series of structural incidents in Larnaca raised concerns over public safety.
Owner responsibility
Larnaca district local government organisation (EOA) president Angelos Hadjicharalambous said authorities could not monitor every private property individually and stressed that responsibility for maintaining buildings rested with owners.
Collapse in Chrysopolitissa
His remarks followed the partial collapse of a house in the Chrysopolitissa area on Monday, where part of a wall and ceiling gave way while three women were inside the property.
The occupants escaped unharmed before emergency services arrived at the scene.
“Fortunately, the three women who lived there managed to get out in time and we did not have any unpleasant developments,” Hadjicharalambous said.
No prior warning
He said the EOA had not previously identified the property as dangerous and had received no complaints or information regarding its condition.
“We knew nothing about this specific building,” he said, adding that the house had not appeared in files transferred from the municipality or in more recent inspections carried out by private architects and EOA officials.
“People must understand that we cannot proceed with an inspection of houses one by one throughout the city and province,” he said.
Emergency response
Emergency services had initially feared people might be trapped beneath debris after the collapse, which occurred shortly before midday on Monday.
Fire brigade crews cordoned off the area while engineers assessed the building’s stability.
