The restoration order was disregarded, leading to a police report being filed in 1996, the spokesperson elaborated in televised remarks on Monday evening.

It is not known what happened in the interceding 27 years.

Earlier investigations conducted by the Public Prosecution revealed that the building had been built prior to 1980, when the country’s construction law was passed.

In a phone interview with CBC TV on Monday, Deputy Governor of Cairo Hossam El-Din Fawzy clarified that the building may have been erected over 70 years ago, most likely between the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Moreover, the deputy governor disclosed that a resident on the first floor had recently demolished an interior wall in their apartment to modify its design, which further weakened the structure of the building.

The prosecution has taken into custody the resident, the contractor responsible for demolishing the wall, as well as the building's owner, the deputy governor affirmed.

The building collapse buried 14 people under the rubble, with only one surviving, as reported by Fawzy.

The National Alliance has provided EGP 50,000 to the families of the deceased and EGP 25,000 to the families of the injured, according to the deputy governor.

Additionally, Minister of Social Solidarity Nevine El-Qabbaj has directed the ministry to pay out EGP 60,000 to the families of each of the deceased.

Five residents managed to escape before the collapse, and temporary accommodations have been arranged for them, the deputy governor confirmed.

For the safety of the residents, the collapsed building's neighbouring properties were evacuated. A committee has since determined that the surrounding properties were largely undamaged, he said.

Parliament objections
 

Mohamed Zein El-Din, member of parliament and secretary of the Mostaqbal Watan Party in Beheira Governorate, addressed the issue of the recent and numerous collapse of buildings across the country on the same day.

He emphasized that the relevant authorities have been negligent in implementing demolition orders for at-risk buildings, calling for an end to the tolerance of illegal floor constructions.

He stressed the urgent need to create an inventory of hazardous buildings that have already been marked for demolition or renovation to prevent any future tragedies from occurring.

String of tragedies
 

Monday's incident adds to a distressing series of recent building collapses throughout the country.

Just hours before the collapse in Hadaeq El-Qubbah, another building collapsed in Alexandria, resulting in the loss of two lives.

On Sunday, a  seven-storey building in Rashid City, Behaira governorate, collapsed, causing 13 injuries and three fatalities.

On 6 July, a two-storey building collapsed in the Gomrok neighbourhood of west Alexandria, resulting in one fatality.

The Sidi Bishr neighborhoud in Alexandria experienced the deadliest building collapse this year before the most recent incident, with a 13-storey building collapse on 26 June killing 10 people.