Building collapse in Tripoli: Father found dead under rubble as search continues

A five-story residential building collapsed at dawn Saturday in the Qobbeih area of Tripoli, northern Lebanon, killing at least one person, according to local correspondent. Two people remain missing. The building had been evacuated Friday after numerous cracks appeared, except for one family that, lacking alternative shelter, was trapped under the rubble.

Six teams from the Lebanese Red Cross were deployed to the site Saturday morning and succeeded in rescuing the mother, who was hospitalized. Civil Defense teams later rescued her daughter, who was also hospitalized and whose condition is stable. The father, Ahmad Abdelhamid al-Mir, 66, was found dead early in the evening. Search operations continued Saturday night to locate his two other children. Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine instructed hospitals to treat the injured at the ministry’s expense.

Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar, who was present at the scene, said that “the absolute priority today is to save lives,” stressing that the state stands by residents of low-income neighborhoods “without any discrimination.” He added that efforts are focused on search and rescue operations, which will be followed by the mobilization of the necessary funds to address the consequences of the incident. “Housing compensation and financial assistance will be granted to all affected families,” the minister promised, expressing hope that everyone could be saved while fearing that the collapse may have caused casualties. “The state will respond to the call of its citizens in Tripoli, and we have given the necessary instructions to all concerned services,” he said.

Hajjar later chaired an expanded meeting at Tripoli’s Serail dedicated to the issue of buildings threatened with collapse in the city. “This file is being handled with the highest degree of seriousness and responsibility,” he said. Acting North Governor Imane Rifai stressed the need to accelerate technical field inspections and establish a clear mechanism to deal with at-risk buildings, either through reinforcement or evacuation when necessary. She emphasized “the importance of securing funding and creating a dedicated fund to launch rehabilitation operations.”

Also present at the scene, Bassam Naboulsi, head of the High Relief Committee, said that “105 buildings, according to a survey by the Tripoli municipality, require the immediate issuance of evacuation warnings to their residents. We are working on two tracks: providing shelter through prefabricated housing, ensuring relocation compensation, and finding solutions for families.” He added that a meeting will be held at the Serail next Monday to allocate funds to the committee in order to begin reinforcement work and the necessary procedures.

Reacting to the incident, President Joseph Aoun said he had asked Interior Minister Ahmad Hajjar “to instruct the concerned services, notably Civil Defense, the Red Cross and the Tripoli municipality, to clear the rubble and rescue the residents of the collapsed building, calling in the army if necessary.” He also ordered an investigation into the causes of the collapse.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said he had contacted the head of the High Relief Committee to work on rescuing the family and providing everything it needs. “I stressed the need to raise the level of preparedness and intensify coordination with the Disaster Management Unit at the Serail, the Tripoli municipality and all concerned services,” he said, noting that “the government attaches paramount importance to the issue of buildings threatened with collapse in Tripoli and is working to address them and secure the necessary funding as soon as possible.”

Tripoli lawmaker Faisal Karameh called on President Aoun to speed up the transfer of the necessary funds to the High Relief Committee so it can urgently begin restoring “more than 100 buildings threatened with collapse, in cooperation with the Tripoli municipality.” He also said that Tripoli’s Islamic Hospital was open to receive the wounded and victims.

Another Tripoli lawmaker, Ashraf Rifi, echoed similar concerns, warning of the existence of “105 other buildings threatened with collapse in the city, in addition to about 600 homes that do not meet safety conditions.” He said he was in contact with the president of the Tripoli municipality and the head of the High Relief Committee to accelerate the provision of prefabricated housing for residents of these buildings, approved by the Cabinet. He also mentioned a proposal to prepare a housing project for residents of the other 600 homes.

Several parties have already sounded the alarm over the risk of building collapses in Tripoli, Lebanon’s poorest city, which suffers from severely deteriorated infrastructure and a lack of funding. Many buildings were constructed without complying with safety standards. A municipal survey revealed the existence of between 600 and 1,000 buildings threatened with collapse. This year, several buildings have collapsed in the major northern city.