Egypt building collapse leaves 9 dead, fourth in a month

At least nine people died when a building collapsed in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Monday as shoddy construction work and lax regulations continue to plague the North African country.

The incident occurred in Cairo’s Hadaeq Al Qubbah neighborhood. Nine people were killed, and another four were rescued and then transported to a hospital due to their injuries, the state-owned Al-Ahram news outlet reported.

The structure was a five-story apartment building. Cairo’s Deputy Gov. Hossam Fawzi said the collapse was the result of a ground floor resident removing several walls during maintenance work. The man has been detained and the collapse is under investigation, according to The Associated Press.

Egypt’s Ministry of Social Solidarity said it will pay 60,000 Egyptian pounds ($1,940) to the family of each victim, Egypt’s official Middle East News Agency reported.

Why it matters: Building collapses are a common occurrence in Egypt due to illegal construction, poor oversight and related issues. Egyptian authorities have been cracking down on illegal building in recent years.

The collapse in Cairo follows at least three others throughout Egypt in the past month. The following is a breakdown of recent building collapses in the country, according to Egyptian media reports.

• A seven-story building collapsed in Beheira in northern Egypt on Sunday, causing four deaths.
• Two people were killed during a partial collapse of a building in Alexandria on Saturday.
• A building collapse in Alexandria led to 10 deaths on June 28. 

With Monday's collapse in Cairo, that brings the death toll from building collapses in Egypt over the past four weeks to at least 25. 

Know more: Egypt has built thousands of mosques in recent years, spending hundreds of millions of dollars. This has prompted criticism amid the ongoing economic crisis, Al-Monitor reported in January.