Astana court hears facade collapse killed paramedic due to design flaws
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An Astana court heard expert testimony that the November 2025 facade collapse that killed paramedic Uldana Myrzuan stemmed from using a low-rise wall assembly on a nine-story building. Expert Veronika Labayeva said the masonry node was rated for five floors maximum and lacked reinforcement. The trial continues.
Key Facts
- Paramedic Uldana Myrzuan died in November 2025 when part of a residential building's facade cladding fell on her in Astana.
- Expert Veronika Labayeva testified that the brick masonry node used was designed for buildings of no more than five floors, but the building has nine floors plus a technical floor.
- The project specified mineral wool insulation, but builders substituted polystyrene foam without authorization.
- The mortar actually used was grade M-25, which is not intended for load-bearing structures.
- The facade lacked monolithic reinforced belts, had masonry bonding errors, and insufficient anchoring of the cladding layer.
Design Flaw
Expert Veronika Labayeva told the court that the structural node for the exterior walls was intended exclusively for low-rise buildings. She stated the brick masonry node is rated for a maximum of five floors and includes no reinforcement—no reinforced belts or additional load-relief belts. The designers applied a low-rise scheme to a nine-story building plus a technical floor, with no calculation justification for the 30-meter height in the documents.
Construction Violations
Builders replaced the project's specified mineral wool insulation with polystyrene foam without authorization. The mortar actually used was grade M-25, which is not designed for load-bearing structures. The facade lacked monolithic reinforced belts, had errors in masonry bonding, and insufficient anchoring of the cladding layer. The combination of these violations led to the facade collapse that killed the paramedic who had arrived on a call.
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