HÀ NỘI — Local authorities and a house owner are joining hands to pull down a tilting house in the capital’s Đống Đa District.

The four-storey house, located at No 117 in Ô Chợ Dừa Ward’s Quan Thổ 1 Alley, has been uninhabited for years due to its dangerous tilt.

After receiving Đống Đa’s District’s reports about the case last month, Nguyễn Thế Hùng, vice chairman of the People’s Committee of Hà Nội City,  ordered a demolition plan for the house and an evacuation plan for residents of the adjacent houses.

The owner, Phạm Đỗ Thanh Thùy, bought the house in 2002 and moved her family in. Some 10 years later, the house started developing cracks and began to tilt. Thùy’s family moved out and sent letters to the authorities asking for an inspection.

The condition of the house was brought to authorities’ attention after the house at No. 43 Cửa Bắc Street collapsed at the beginning of last month, killing two people and injuring three.

“For now, I have signed a contract with a demolishing company and they have proposed a solution to the concerned authorities,” the owner told news website Cafef last week.

‘They will start demolishing the house right after I complete all the necessary procedures,” she said.

Thùy said she was pleased with the authorities’ response and serious attitude in handling the issue.

Illegal building’s floor awaits demolition

The demolition of the illegally built 19th floor of the building at No 8B on Lê Trực Street in Ba Đình District is expected to be completed next month.

This was announced by Đỗ Viết Bình, chairman of Ba Đình District’s People’s Committee, to an inspection team of the Prime Minister’s office yesterday.

The 69m building, of which 53m are above ground, has raised public concerns not only because of its excessive height, but also because of the slow demolition process which started three months ago.

At the end of June, the People’s Committee of Điện Biên Ward, Ba Đình District, ended a contract with the Hải Anh Phát demolition company because it failed to meet deadlines.

The Phương Bắc demolition company took over the project at the beginning of July. However, one and a-half months later, the company had only demolished some 30 per cent of the illegally built floor because it was using simple concrete drill machines instead of advanced ones.

“The first phase – to remove the illegally built floor – will be completed in October. However, we need to work more with different sectors and the city’s authorities to develop proper plans for the second phase,” he said.

He also said the project was delayed partly because the authority wanted to ensure the safety of workers, residents and the environment and preserve the building’s structure for future use.

According to another representative from the People’s Committee of Điện Biên Ward, the Phương Bắc demolition company has installed a tower crane to remove construction materials from the 19^th floor, reducing noise and dust during the demolition process.  

The city’s construction department had sent officials to examine the crane in order to issue a license that would allow it to start working today.

A representative from the Phương Bắc company said the 19th floor would be demolished before October 30. — VNS