WOKEN UP BY A SOUND THEY WILL NEVER FORGET: Four families evacuated in Novi Pazar, their houses collapsed due to a construction site!

Four families from Novi Pazar have been evacuated from their homes because the houses became unsafe after part of one of them collapsed into the foundation pit of a neighboring construction site. The owners say they had warned about cracks days before the collapse and point the finger at the investor and the relevant city services. The investor claims that the works were supervised and announces that he will build a new house for the affected family.

Elvis Džafović was woken up by a creaking sound on Monday morning.

“I ran out to see what was happening. I headed toward the window. But I didn’t even have the strength to move the bed. I rushed out through the door. And suddenly, part of the house simply disappeared,” Džafović said.

Part of the wall with reinforcement, the stairs, and the garage ended up in the construction pit. But so did children’s toys. Fortunately, Elvis’ sons and wife were not in the house because they had decided several days earlier not to sleep there. They had reported the cracks, but they say—nobody reacted.

“You have the feeling that someone wants to drive you out of your own house. They are not interested in repairs or an agreement. Nothing. The construction authorities do nothing. The structural engineers do not dare sign anything. There is nobody. Neither the state nor the law,” Džafović said.

The Emergency Response Headquarters in Novi Pazar assessed that four houses were no longer safe for living and ordered the owners to evacuate.

“Preparatory works were being carried out here. I am not yet familiar with the details of what happened. But it is visible that these houses have collapsed and that they are no longer usable,” said Ismail Dupljak from the Emergency Response Headquarters.

The Construction Inspection Department said that the City Administration in Novi Pazar had issued all necessary permits to the investor, the company “Dalas Nameštaj,” for carrying out the works.

“We will compensate all damages. And we will restore everything to a safe condition. There were discussions between this family and us. Experts—structural engineers—came and determined that it was safe,” said Enes Mahmutović, a representative of the investor.

The Construction Inspection Department also stated that the construction site had previously been inspected several times and that no irregularities had been found.

Although it remains to be determined what could have caused the collapse of part of the house, as well as what caused the landslide to appear, the Construction Inspection Department said that heavy rainfall affecting this part of Serbia could also have contributed. Because of this, they will increase inspections of active construction sites.