CHAPTER ONEN
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
Building can be explained as a structural that provides shelter to lives and properties, it could be a school, church, shop, or factory that has roof, walls. A lot of building specifically in Port-Harcourt and Lagos state have collapsed and thereby causing a huge economic waste and lost of lives of people and properties.
Building failure can be defined as the collapse of structure, while building disaster gives evidence of a structural member being unsafe before the actual collapse. Building failure in a construction sector is an indispensable factor that must be considered with great care and skills (Field, 1986 pp 7).
From the experiment done so far by the researchers, it is being observed that building failed and superstructure failed. Bearing capacity failed due to high moisture content and differential excessive settlement.
However, investigation of structural failure in building is an extensive research work, a lot of laboratory test, observation and analysis, but for the purpose of this project, effort have been made to reduce the research on those aspect considered very relevant.
There are so many factors that could lead to failure in building and these failures have various modes with which they occur, it should be realised, however that errors are major causes of structural collapse and no matter how they are derived they are little help in preventing collapse resulting from them.
Some examples of structural collapse are as follows:
Terrorist attack, Pentagon, Washington DC 2001
Herron Road Bridge, Ottawa 1996
Terrorist Bombing, Murrah Federal Building, Owahoma City, 1995
Second narrow Bridge, Vancower 1958
Tank failure, Ashland oil co, Pitsburgh 1988
Quebec bridge (1907, 1916)
(www.du.edu/jeaivert/failurehtm).
1.2 AREA OF STUDY
The research work took place in Port Harcourt Area of Rivers State which is in the capital city at plot 308 Abacha Road Rumueme, Port Harcourt Rivers State.