Police seal off Golden Gate Hotel as it cracks

Police have cordoned off Golden Gate Hotel in Gulu City citing the risk to human health as the storeyed building has developed multiple cracks.

The hotel was closed on Friday evening and the occupants were evacuated by the police’s technical wing and the officials from the Gulu City Council engineering department.

The City Metropolitan Police Commander Peter Ocen told theCooperator in an interview that the proprietor of the hotel has failed to voluntarily evacuate the premises despite several alert warnings.

He explained that police had received complaints from the public about the sorry state of the building which is vividly noticed by the multiple cracks.

The City engineer Christo Balmoi revealed that the Council had written notice of evacuation to the management of the hotel on May 12, 2022, which was not honored.

He however revealed that an appointed committee is conducting an investigation under which the building of that nature is near to collapse 10 years only after it was constructed.

“Our concern is on public safety and we are yet to conduct a thorough structural integrity test but from what we can see is that there is already a structural failure and the hotel has to close,” Balmoi explained.

He further said the city council is also scrutinising the approved plan for the hotel/building. It was approved by the then Gulu Municipal Council which, he said seems to have loopholes that violate the set standards.

However, the official from the city council who spoke under the condition of anonymity revealed that the building plan approved for the hotel was only meant for two floors above the ground floor.

The Manager of the hotel Francis Oyet however told theCooperator that the closure of the hotel has affected about 20 of the employees.

https://thecooperator.news/gulu-city-council-seeks-shs3-4-billion-supplementary-budget/

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