Experts blame illegal floors in 2019 building collapse

ISTANBUL

The 2019 collapse of an apartment building in Istanbul’s Kartal district that killed 21 people was caused by illegally added floors and substandard construction materials, a new expert report filed in court has suggested.

The report prepared by a five-member panel said two extra floors were illegally added to the Yeşilyurt Apartment, originally designed for seven stories, enlarging each level by 41 square meters, daily Hürriyet reported on Aug. 31.

The findings also revealed that the concrete used failed to meet safety standards and included sea sand, with mussel shells visible in the mortar.

Prosecutors have charged 34 people, including the building’s designer, Suzan Çayır, construction manager Uğur Mısırlıoğlu, technician Arzu Keleş, municipal staff and engineers. The indictment seeks prison terms of up to 15 years.

The report found Mısırlıoğlu and the building’s owner and contractor, Hikmet Yeşilyurt, primarily responsible for the collapse. Five municipal employees were deemed secondarily at fault, while no fault was assigned to the remaining defendants.