VietNamNet Bridge – 120 households at the apartment block No. 727 Tran Hung Dao road, District 5, HCM City are living in fear because their houses can collapse anytime.


This street-facing apartment building is named President Building.
It is only 1km from Ben Thanh market. The 13-storey building
was built in the 60s, with six blocks, totaling 530 rooms.
When it was inaugurated, the building was among the highest
and the most modern structures in Saigon. It began seriously
downgrading since 2002. The city authorities planed to
remove local residents out of the building.
After more than 5 decades, concrete poles now expose their iron cores.
The building has become a dangerous home.
Hundreds of households have left the building, making it more devastated
 and dirty. Drug addicts and homeless people have sought shelter inside
 the building. “Since 2008, families have been removed from the building,
 in three stages. At present, 120 households still live here because of
administrative procedures,” said Tran Van Long, who is paid VND900,000 ($45)
 per month to guard the building.
The building is now in the worst condition. Everything is decayed and smelly.
 Rubbish covers every corner. However, people who are living here cannot
 mend their apartments. They are waiting for leaving the building.
Without a management board, local residents have to organize everything,
from security to rubbish collection, mending pumping machines, etc.


Only old people and kids stay at home in the daytime. All apartments
 close their doors to avoid drug addicts. “We don’t leave our rooms at
night because we are afraid of seeing drug addicts,” a local said.
Though the building is dangerous, this 40-year-old woman has climbed up
the stairs to the highest storey to sell groceries for ten years.
There are several families on the highest storey. This boy, 8, said he was
very sad on free days when he did not have to go to school. On these days,
he played with his grandmother or played computer games.
All families want to get out of the building but they have to wait for the local
authorities to arrange new apartments for them.


VNE