Israel, builders' alarm: 80,000 buildings at risk of collapse need to be rebuilt

2021-09-16T09:35:05.825Z

As many as 80,000 buildings with around 300,000 apartments are in danger of collapsing in Israel and will have to be rebuilt in the coming years to avoid calamities. The Israeli Builders' Association sounded the alarm. "We published it in a report that we presented to the government in 2017, but we have been saying it for years," said the deputy director general of the association Shay Pauzner. Earlier this week, a residential building in Holon collapsed. No one was injured as firefighters and rescue services evacuated 16 families from the building the day before out of concern that it was unsafe. But the episode raised a strong alarm. "Construction standards in Israel have evolved significantly in recent years, and the architectural design of older buildings is generally considered to be less stable. Foundation corrosion and other effects of aging put these buildings at greater risk. The houses built along the Mediterranean coast are particularly at risk due to humidity ", underlined the Association of Israeli Builders.