Macpherson flags safety gaps after building collapses across SA

Public Works and Infrastructure, Minister Dean Macpherson, says South Africa does not lack laws governing construction, but weak enforcement, poor oversight and non-compliance are putting lives at risk.

Macpherson made the remarks on Thursday as he released findings from investigations into several building and construction collapses, including two incidents in Gauteng that claimed the lives of 12 people.

One of the most serious incidents occurred in Doornkop, Soweto, on 28 December last year, when a two-storey residential structure collapsed in the early hours, following heavy rainfall, killing three members of one family, including a 64-year-old woman, her daughter and granddaughter.

Investigators found that the property was situated on high-risk dolomitic land, where the risk of ground collapse had previously been identified. A sinkhole, or doline, beneath the building was identified as most likely the cause of the collapse.

Macpherson says the property was vacated in the 1990s because of the risk to residents. However, part of the structure remained standing and was later occupied by another family.

The investigation raised concerns about the City of Johannesburg’s management of dolomitic land, with several other high-risk areas identified.

“Identifying a danger is not enough. Once government knows that land or a structure poses a serious risk to life, that risk has to be actively managed until it is resolved.”

– “A disaster waiting to happen” –

Just months later, another deadly incident struck Johannesburg on 2 March 2026, when part of an industrial building under construction in Ormonde collapsed while concrete topping was being placed on suspended floors.

Nine workers were killed and six others were injured, with investigators describing the incident as “a disaster waiting to happen”.

Macpherson says engineers found significant deficiencies in the structure supporting the suspended floors, with the beams and columns lacking sufficient capacity to support the work being carried out.

The Minister also revealed that the concerns went beyond the structural failure.

Investigations also uncovered that the City of Johannesburg had not received an application for building approval before the collapse, with the application only submitted afterwards.

Critical construction drawings and design information were also not provided to investigators, limiting their ability to establish whether the structure complied with applicable standards.

The investigation further raised concerns about some of the professionals involved in the project, including the involvement of a previously deregistered engineer and questions about the competence of another registered engineer.

Macpherson says the Gauteng cases highlight a wider problem across the country’s construction sector, that buildings can sometimes progress substantially before authorities even know they exist.

“Building approval is not unnecessary red tape. It is a public safety control. The purpose of obtaining approval before construction is precisely to allow the relevant authority to consider whether what is proposed complies with the law before people are exposed to risk.

– Gauteng municipalities under the spotlight – 

The Minister says municipalities are on the frontline of building regulation, but the investigations have highlighted shortages of qualified building control professionals and limited inspection capacity.

He says these constraints can make it difficult for municipalities to identify construction projects that have never entered the formal approval system.

“We should not generalise across every municipality. The findings themselves demonstrate materially different circumstances between the municipalities involved, but where capacity constraints exist, they directly affect the ability of the government to protect the public,” Macpherson said. 

Among the proposals is better early detection of major construction projects, including stronger ward-level reporting and potentially using large orders of concrete or precast slabs as indicators of significant construction activity that should alert building control authorities.

Macpherson says another major problem is that regulators do not always share information effectively. 

The National Home Builders Registration Council is expected to have information about residential developments, while professional councils hold records on registered professionals.

He says bringing these sources of information together could help authorities identify warning signs before a collapse occurs.

– From George to Johannesburg: A Recurring Warning – 

Macpherson says the latest investigations cannot be viewed as isolated incidents.

The findings from George, Doornkop, Ormonde and other collapses point to recurring problems with professional accountability, information sharing, construction oversight, verification of professional competence and enforcement.

The George tragedy in May 2024 claimed 34 lives when a multi-storey building under construction collapsed.

Another collapse in Verulam in December 2025 killed five people and injured 11, while four workers were injured in Cape Town’s Sea Point in February 2026 when temporary formwork failed at a residential development.

Macpherson says while the circumstances of each incident differ, the repeated failures show that South Africa needs to improve its ability to detect risks before they become disasters.

The Council for the Built Environment has now been instructed to share the findings and recommendations with the affected municipalities and other stakeholders.

Where professional conduct requires further investigation, the matters will be referred to the relevant professional councils.

📸 Minister of Public Works & Infrastructure Dean Macpherson, alongside CBE Chairperson Amelia Mtshali and CBE CEO Dr Msizi Myeza, has released the findings of four investigations by the Council for the Built Environment into recent building and construction collapses across… pic.twitter.com/jqYeHbe9zF

— South African Government (@GovernmentZA) August 20, 2026

WATCH NOW : Minister Dean Macpherson MP ‘ s media briefing currenly underway at GCIS, Tshedimosetso house , Pretoria.https://t.co/idUn1hiF8f pic.twitter.com/qHUrdyKSQK

— Department Of Public Works and Infrastructure (@DepartmentPWI) August 20, 2026