Vojvode Vlahovica Wall Collapse: Prosecutors Probe Developer

A retaining wall at a construction site on Vojvode Vlahovica Street collapsed around 5 p.m. on September 23, in the Brace Jerkovic neighborhood of Vozdovac, near the turnaround for bus line 26. Part of the parking area belonging to a neighboring building, along with a car, fell into the hole that opened up. According to information available so far, no one was injured.

Residents of the building closest to the construction site were evacuated as a precaution. According to RTS, they were temporarily placed in a hotel after part of the sidewalk that endangers the building also gave way. No source has specified how many residents were evacuated.

Firefighters, police, communal police and an intervention unit responded to the scene. The road into the neighborhood was closed to traffic, with passage allowed only for residents. The on duty prosecutor from the Second Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office went to the scene and ordered steps to determine the cause.

“I saw that it had collapsed, that a hole had formed. We told the police we’d go in at our own risk to get our things. We’re waiting for further instructions on whether they’ll even let us in for our belongings,” Maja, a resident who lives near the construction site, told N1.

Prosecutors Probe Developer and Inspectors

The Special Department for the Suppression of Corruption at the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade has opened a case over the collapse and requested documentation from the Secretariat for Inspection, Oversight and Communication. Prosecutors want insight into how the site was overseen and how the developer acted. They also requested the location conditions, project documentation and building permit from the Secretariat for Urban Planning.

The prosecution is also checking whether residents had previously reported ground movement or other irregularities at the site, and what action, if any, the inspection took. The Second Basic Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade is handling the same case separately.

The construction inspection has shut down the site. All work has been banned except for repairing the foundation pit and securing the surrounding buildings, roads and terrain. The closure order has been posted on the site’s fence.

Was the Developer Warned Before?

Yes, according to the “Moje naselje” (My Neighborhood) initiative. Its representative, Marko Mladenovic, says they notified the inspection about a collapse in the foundation pit in early June, but only got a response in July.

“There was a collapse of the foundation pit, which we reported to the inspection in early June. We received the inspection’s response only in July,” Mladenovic told N1. At the time, he says, the only order given was to patch the asphalt.

Mladenovic adds that the site has a building permit, but that registration of the works, according to CEOP, the central registry, still hasn’t been completed.

“The site has a building permit, but according to CEOP, the central registry, the registration of works is still pending, which means the works haven’t been approved. Whether that counts as a violation or not should have been established by the inspection that was here,” he told N1.

Stefan Simic of the Movement of Free Citizens was at the scene the day after the collapse. He places the greatest responsibility on the Secretariat for Inspection.

“As a result of all this, we now have another building at risk, with all its residents evacuated,” Simic told N1. He recalled that residents had earlier blocked Brace Jerkovic Street demanding a response from the authorities, but that none came.

He also described the pace of the repair work, which he says differs sharply from the pace before the collapse. “While I’ve been here, and I arrived an hour ago, almost a hundred trucks have unloaded. So apparently everything can suddenly be done quickly and efficiently, but only once a situation like this happens,” he told N1.

Repairs Underway

On the morning of September 24, trucks brought in soil and excavators dumped it into the foundation pit to prevent further collapse. The car that fell into the hole had, according to RTS, still not been pulled out by that morning. Vojvode Vlahovica Street remains closed to traffic, while bus line 26 is running normally from the turnaround.

The site’s developer is, according to Mondo, Stevan Micic. He is linked to the Avenia hospitality venue in the Medakovic neighborhood and the Stadion restaurant in the Stadion shopping center, as well as to the construction companies Stadion Invest and Stadion Construction. Neither the developer nor the contractor on site would comment.

The Secretariat for Inspection said it has deployed all available resources to determine possible failures by everyone involved in the construction, including the developer, the responsible contractor, professional oversight and other responsible parties. It said the documentation will be made available to prosecutors without delay.