By NATARIO McKENZIE​

Tribune Business Reporter​

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net​

WORKS Minister Desmond Bannister said yesterday sufficient building inspectors must be hired to ensure all new buildings meet requisite standards, while lamenting that ‘no building code’ would have provided protection against ‘superstorm’ Hurricane Dorian.​

Responding to Tribune Business inquiries, Mr Bannister noted the existing building code is designed to protect buildings when facing winds of up to 150mph.

“This was upgraded in 1997 from 120mph,” he said. “There are several challenges with respect to Dorian. First, this was a superstorm with gusts exceeding 200mph. I know of no building code that would have provided protection. Secondly, in any event, homes that would have been built prior to the revision would have been vulnerable to winds that exceeded 120mph.”

“The real challenge moving forward lies in building capacity in sufficient hiring of inspectors to ensure that all new buildings within the country meet the requisite standards.”​

Concerns have been raised in the past over the proper policing and enforcement of building codes, particularly in the Family Islands. ​

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis had called for a full review of the building code following the widespread destruction by Hurricane Irma in the southern Bahamas back in 2017.