Serious findings are emerging from the investigation into the partial collapse of a building at 63 Nachalat Binyamin Street in Tel Aviv, which occurred during Tama 38/1 reinforcement work. According to a Labor Ministry statement, safety inspectors who arrived at the scene found that the construction site operated in violation of the law without being reported to the ministry, and no work manager had been appointed as required by law.
Chief Labor Inspector Eng. Chezi Schwartzman noted that the failed Tama project involved adding floors to the structure, with the causes currently being investigated on site by local authority engineers. Schwartzman emphasized that the unreported site posed a danger to workers and the general public, and called on municipal leaders to conduct proactive inspections to detect and halt such work.
Following the findings at the scene, ministry inspectors issued a safety order closing the site for an extended period. The incident itself resulted in no casualties, though part of the building collapsed during the renovation work.
Meanwhile, Tel Aviv-Yafo municipality documents reveal a complex engineering history for the structure. In 2023, a "dangerous building" file was opened for the building due to defects discovered in the concrete, balconies, stairwells and walls. On January 30, 2024, building engineer Yosef Karni determined that repair and rehabilitation work had been carried out under his supervision and the danger had been removed, according to Ynet.
Following a municipal inspection, the file was closed on February 13, 2024, and the building was removed from the dangerous structures list. The municipality noted that the project developer and executing company had received a building permit for Tama 38 that included reinforcement and additional floors. Authorities are now examining whether there is a connection between the defects repaired previously, the manner in which current reinforcement work was carried out, and the collapse.
