The partial collapse of a building in the coastal city of Alexandria left a 55 year old housewife dead on Monday.
Her body was pulled from underneath the rubble after the ceiling of the top floor of the old, four storey building collapsed, state-run MENA reported. The building has been evacuated.
Another building made up of a single storey also collapsed in the Matruh governorate on Monday as well, but did not leave any fatalities or injuries behind, MENA said. The collapse lead to the partial collapse of an adjacent building. Authorities told the owner to temporarily evacuate the building for his own safety.
Alexandria has suffered from a series of deadly building collapses, with at least half a dozen collapsed buildings since July 2012. In that month alone, two buildings collapsed, one crashing into adjacent buildings leaving at least 20 dead. The other, which came one week after, killed a mother and her two daughters in West Alexandria. In September 2012, an ageing building collapsed.
An eight-storey building collapse in January claimed the lives of at least 24 and left eight injured. In February, a three storey building collapsed in Alexandria, leaving one dead and four injured. A further two lost their lives in August when the seven storey building they reside in collapsed.
Some buildings in Alexandria are built on uneven ground, with some hazardous or even leaning, but residents with few other options remain there regardless.
Eight NGOs prepared a document that includes suggestions for articles to be included in the constitution which is currently being amended. Among the requested rights were the right to adequate housing and the right to participate in urban development operations.
The NGOs, which include the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights and the Egyptian Centre for Social and Economic Rights, said in a statement on 27 October that around 20 million people live in 1,125 informal or unplanned settlements, which is estimated to be around 23 percent of the population.
According to the NGOs, the state has long abandoned its commitments towards providing appropriate housing for impoverished and low income people. The first step to creating change, they said, is through the new constitution.
