The Larnaca District Local Government Organisation (DLGO) has extended a deadline for owners of the Filanta apartment complex to begin hazard-removal procedures, warning that evacuation orders and court action will follow if they fail to comply.
The DLGO issued notices and posted warnings on the building last Friday, giving owners three working days to take measures to address the structural danger.
DLGO president Angelos Hatzikyriacos told Philenews the deadline had now passed but that a further two to three days would be allowed given that some owners had made contact and were making efforts to comply.
He said owners who appointed an engineer and presented a plan to address the problem would be given additional time, but that those who did not would face evacuation, followed by a court order if necessary.
The Filanta complex, located in the Larnaca port area, comprises five blocks with 79 apartments and ten commercial premises, with more than 90 owners. It is the largest building in Larnaca to have been declared at risk of collapse.
The building came to wider attention on May 27, when a foreign national died and two others were injured after jumping from balconies to avoid arrest during a large-scale operation by the Civil Registry and Migration Department.
Conditions inside
DLGO officers conducting door-to-door inspections found what Hatzikyriacos described as appalling living and sanitation conditions, with many apartments occupied by foreign nationals and some housing as many as ten people.
He said inspectors had also found residents illegally drawing electricity from one another’s supplies, adding that “there are violations upon violations in this building.”
Hatzikyriacos said multiple agencies needed to be mobilised. Beyond the DLGO’s hazard-removal mandate, he said the Police needed to establish who was living in the building, the Larnaca Municipality had to address nuisance and sanitation issues, the Electromechanical Service and the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) needed to deal with the illegal electrical connections, and the Fire Service had to address blocked emergency exits.
In the coming days the DLGO will carry out similar actions at other large apartment buildings in Larnaca that have been declared dangerous, according to Hatzikyriacos.
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