Minister Macpherson reveals suspected reason why Verulam temple collapsed
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson says substandard materials were used in the construction of the four-storey building that collapsed in Verulam, north of Durban, on Friday, December 12, claiming five lives.
Preliminary findings point to serious construction failures, regulatory breaches, and possible criminality.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, Macpherson said the information being shared was “preliminary in nature” and based on an initial expert assessment conducted by the Council for the Built Environment (CBE), which he had mandated to lead the investigation in cooperation with provincial and municipal authorities.
He said the structure involved was a reinforced concrete multi-storey building under construction, comprising concrete columns, flat slabs and masonry walls. The collapse occurred while concrete was being poured, with reports indicating that work was underway on the upper levels at the time of the incident.
“Preliminary evidence, including available video footage, points to a sudden structural failure, most likely triggered by a formwork or shuttering failure during the pumping of wet concrete,” he said.
Macpherson said it had also been observed that substandard concrete material and substandard reinforced columns were used.
“It is vitally important, therefore, that we urgently track down the supplier and builder that used this material to stop this from happening anywhere else,” he said. “We have been unable to do so, but we are working around the clock to track them down.”
He explained that such a failure imposed “significant and abnormal dynamic loads” on the floors below, loads that buildings are not structurally designed to withstand, resulting in a rapid and progressive collapse.
Early visual assessments, he said, raised serious concerns regarding the quality of construction, including misaligned structural elements and potentially substandard materials.
“Rescue personnel further reported that the concrete encountered on site appeared friable,” Macpherson said, adding that further forensic testing would be required. “For those who were there, you would have noticed that the concrete was quite powdery in what we saw.”
Of particular concern, he said, were preliminary indications that no approved building plans had been submitted, no construction permits had been issued, and that the building may have been occupied prior to the issuance of an occupational certificate.
“All of which would constitute serious contraventions of the National Building Regulations and Standards,” Macpherson said.
He added that in the absence of these submissions, authorities were deprived of the opportunity to inspect, monitor or intervene during construction and “quite possibly they could have stopped it”.
He confirmed that the site had been formally classified as a crime scene and would be handed over to the Department of Employment and Labour once final operations were concluded to continue statutory investigations alongside other authorities.
“These preliminary findings underscore the seriousness of this incident and the importance of a thorough, coordinated investigation to establish exactly what went wrong, who is responsible, and how similar tragedies can be prevented in future,” Macpherson said.
He said that while the precise failure mechanism would be determined through a detailed forensic investigation, it was already clear that serious lapses had occurred during construction.
“As I said on Saturday, we can never, ever normalise the collapse of buildings in South Africa,” he said. “It is abnormal, and we must respond with the urgency that this disaster requires.”
Macpherson said steps had been taken to strengthen the criminal investigation, given the clear indications of potential criminality.
“On Sunday afternoon, I formally wrote to the Acting Minister of Police, Minister Cachalia, to request his assistance in facilitating inter-provincial cooperation within the South African Police Service in relation to this investigation,” he said.
“Specifically, I requested that the SAPS investigative team from the Western Cape, which previously led the complex investigation into the George building collapse, be made available where appropriate to support and collaborate with the KwaZulu-Natal SAPS team responsible for the RedCliffe investigation,” he said.
He stressed that the intervention was not intended to replace local capacity.
“The purpose of this request is not to replace local investigative capacity, but to strengthen it by drawing on experience gained in a similar tragedy, particularly in navigating the technical evidentiary and regulatory complexities that arise in cases of major structural failures,” Macpherson said.
He said his department, together with the CBE, was leading the technical investigation and stood ready to support law enforcement.
“My department, together with the Council for the Built Environment, is leading the technical investigation into the collapse and stands ready to support the SAPS in any manner required to ensure accountability, justice for affected families, and the prevention of similar incidents in the future,” he said.
“Where loss of life occurs as a result of possible negligence or unlawful conduct, there can be no room for delay, fragmentation, or uncertainty,” Macpherson said. “Those responsible must be identified and the law must take its course.”
Macpherson said the CBE had recommended three immediate precautionary measures, which he fully supported, including detecting illegal building activities across municipalities, requiring ready-mix concrete providers to notify building control bodies of large concrete deliveries, and launching a community-based public awareness campaign on the importance of building approvals and statutory processes.
He confirmed that President Cyril Ramaphosa had been kept informed since the collapse.
“The President was deeply concerned and troubled by this incident, especially for the victims, their families, and all those that have been injured and affected,” Macpherson said.
He added that the President had received the preliminary investigation report and expressed full support for the steps taken to strengthen the criminal investigation, technical oversight and coordination across spheres of government.
While the preliminary report highlighted individual lapses, Macpherson warned that the Redcliffe collapse, like the George building incident, points to systemic challenges in regulating the built environment in South Africa.
Responsibility for building control, workplace safety, professional regulation, and enforcement is spread across multiple departments, and gaps in oversight can lead to repeated tragedies, he said.
“This is not a matter that can be addressed by any single department or sphere alone. It is an issue that requires cabinet-level consideration, informed by the outcomes of this investigation, to determine whether stronger coordinating mechanisms, clearer lines of responsibility, or regulatory reforms are required,” he said.
Macpherson said the technical, criminal and labour-related investigations were now under way and would proceed without interference.
He said his department would continue to work closely with all relevant authorities and that outcomes would be communicated transparently once investigations were concluded, while ensuring that criminal proceedings were not compromised.
He also acknowledged and thanked disaster management teams, emergency services and first responders for their work under extremely difficult and dangerous conditions.
hope.ntanzi@iol.co.za
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