Quake hit HDC houses hard

AS SASCHA Scipio, her husband Keon and their seven-year-old daughter fled their Housing Development Corporation (HDC) home, seeking open ground, when an earthquake struck yesterday, the staircase they were using began to collapse.

When Newsday visited their home at Mora Heights, Rio Claro today, Scipio was still shaken.

“We got so scared because of how strong the earthquake was and as we start to run down the stairs, the lower part collapse right after we pass on it,” she said. “Afterwards when we came back under the house, we realised all of the pillars holding up the house were also cracked.”

Her home has two staircases, one on either side, and both were damaged.

“We were too afraid to go back in the house, so we slept in the car last night with our daughter.”

Her family was not the only one forced to do so, as five other houses along the same street had similar damage.

Michael Degrilla, one of Scipio’s neighbours, said his staircases and the pillars holding up his home had also cracked.

He and his wife also spent the night in their car. When they chanced a return visit to their bedroom for clothes, Degrilla said he felt the house swaying.

“This entire building might very well collapse. It seems there was very shoddy workmanship when these houses were built.

"When I went upstairs I saw the centre wall in my house cracked and the house felt like it was moving with every footstep I took.”

At Beech Natural Avenue, Ansa Khan said he remained trapped in his home when the earthquake struck because he could not leave his wife’s disabled uncle alone.

“I had gone into his room when the shaking started, and there was no way I could have left him, so I stayed until it was over.”

When he glanced through a window, he saw neighbours staring at him and only then realised the loud crash he had heard during the earthquake was his back staircase collapsing completely.

Pieces of the wrought-iron railing banister were still jutting from the building today as Khan tried to assess the damage.

He said the front staircase was also cracked and every time one of his family used it, small clouds of dust and mortar fell from it.

He said HDC staff had visited him on last evening and again today, promising to repair the damage “soon.”

Asked if he felt safe staying in the house, he replied, “Of course not, but I have nowhere else to go with my family, so I don’t have a choice.”

Another resident, who asked not to be identified, said he blames shoddy workmanship.

“If you look at the cracks, the mortar is just peeling away like it’s all sand and no cement. I don’t understand how they (HDC) are talking about repairing these damages because in most cases, the pillars supporting the houses have been badly damaged.”

Almost 20 other homeowners in the development reported cracks in the exterior walls of their homes.

Chairman of the Mayaro/Rio Claro Regional Corporation Glen Ram visited the affected residents today. Ram said he has taken a wait-and-see approach to HDC’s response but if residents are not satisfied, he is prepared to put together a legal team to represent their interests.

Multiple calls to the cellphone of Housing Minister Edmund Dillon went unanswered.

Newsday also tried the cellphone of HDC’s managing director Brent Lyons without success.