Horrifying photos of cracking support beams, exposed pipes and uneven floors at unit block under construction in Queensland prove that Australia is enduring a construction crisis, according to a property guru.
Edwin Almeida, managing partner and licensee-in-charge of Just Think Real Estate, shared the images on Twitter last week.
‘This building is currently under construction and people are signing off on this… 30 plus levels of residential NIGHTMARE,’ he captioned them.
‘Shameful & scary times for buyers of new apartments in Australia,’ he added without saying which city the block was in.
It comes amid warnings an evacuated Sydney apartment block may be sinking into the ground.
Property expert Edwin Almeida shared worrying pictures (above) to Twitter last week of a site in Queensland that is still under construction
Images from a Queensland unit block showed large cracks in support beams, exposed pipes and concrete already deteriorating
The 10-year-old Mascot Towers was evacuated two weeks ago over concerns about continued cracking in the primary support structure and facade masonry.
Since then, residents of its 132 units have been forced to sleep elsewhere, with costs quickly adding up as authorities scramble to determine who is at fault.
Mascot Towers’ coordinating engineer has now identified a new issue along the northern and eastern boundaries of the complex.
‘It appears that the building is moving in a downward motion,’ an update sent to residents and owners on Monday night said.
The update didn’t elaborate on ‘downward motion’.
Shocking images showing shoddy construction in Queensland were posted on Twitter by Just Think Real Estate
Two senior geotechnical engineers have been engaged and are visiting the site this week with help from Engineers Australia, the update said.
Internal monitoring has been expanded, while equipment to measure external movement has been set up on Church Avenue and Bourke Road.
Meanwhile, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has dodged questions over whether residents who fled Mascot Towers will eventually have to repay a loan from the government to fund emergency accommodation.
The state government on Sunday announced a multi-million dollar assistance package ‘until liability can be determined and these costs recovered’.
Sydney’s Mascot Towers appears to be ‘moving in a downward motion’, according to the building’s co-ordinating engineer
The package offers one-off emergency loans to cover up to $400 per night for temporary accommodation, for a period of up to three months.
But it remains unclear what will happen if no one is found to be at fault or if insurance claims aren’t paid out.
When asked to guarantee that residents themselves won’t have to pay the money back, Ms Berejiklian said the government was ‘working through those issues’.
‘The engineers haven’t yet finished their assessments,’ she said.
The money for the loans will come from the interest accumulated in the NSW Government’s rental bonds fund.
Last year Opal Tower in Sydney Olympic Park was evacuated after residents reported the building had shifted.
In April a spokeswoman for building company Icon confirmed 169 of the 392 apartments still aren’t ready for people to move back in.
And on Sunday a burst water main forced hundreds of residents to evacuate from a Melbourne CBD apartment block, the cause of which is still unknown.
Mr Almeida told Daily Mail Australia: ‘The issue is broader (than Opal and Mascot) and not only contained to high-rise development.
‘Low-set and basically new construction has a grey cloud over it – low quality, toxins, bad ventilation and very low-quality imported materials used.
‘More and more blocks will be evacuated.’
On Sunday emergency crews attended the Liberty Tower complex, at the corner of Spencer and Collins streets, about 7pm on Sunday after water flooded the basement.
Emergency crews (pictured) attended the Liberty Tower complex, at the corner of Spencer and Collins streets, about 7pm on Sunday after water flooded the basement
The flooding affected a basement substation, killing power supply to the 27-storey, 237-apartment building entirely, including the lifts.
An emergency evacuation order was issued, and a Melbourne City Council spokeswoman said it was issued because there was no power, heating or water.
The cause of the burst water main remains unknown, but is not believed to be related to construction issues.
Residents won’t be allowed to return until Thursday as building management and emergency services secure the building.
A relief centre has been set up at Melbourne Town Hall to support residents while the emergency order remains in place.
Calls to the building manager have not been returned.
The cause of the burst water main remains unknown, but is not believed to be related to construction issues