Retaining wall collapse at Belgrade construction site swallows car and parking area; Prosecutors open investigation

A retaining wall at a construction site on Vojvode Vlahovića Street in Belgrade, Serbia, collapsed at approximately 17:00 local time on September 23, 2026. The failure took place in the Braće Jerković neighborhood of the Voždovac municipality, close to the turnaround of bus line 26. Part of a parking area belonging to a neighboring residential building, together with a parked car, fell into the resulting opening. Telegraf.rs reported that the hole was several dozen meters deep. Current reports indicate that no one was injured.

Images from the scene showed a white car inside the excavation with a large portion of the parking lot, and an excavator standing at its edge.

Evacuation and emergency response

Police ordered the evacuation of the building closest to the site as a precaution. According to RTS, as reported by Srpske Novine, residents were moved to a hotel temporarily after a section of sidewalk near the building also gave way. The number of evacuated residents has not been disclosed.

Firefighters, police, communal police and an intervention unit attended the scene. The street was closed to traffic, and only residents were allowed through. The on-duty prosecutor from the Second Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade visited the site and ordered measures to determine the cause of the collapse.

Remediation works

On the morning of September 24, trucks delivered soil to the site, and excavators placed it into the foundation pit to prevent further collapse. According to RTS, the car had not yet been recovered that morning. Vojvode Vlahovića Street remained closed.

Reports on public transport differed. Telegraf.rs said the 26L minibus service had been canceled. Srpske Novine reported that line 26 was running normally from its turnaround.

The construction inspection has closed the site. All works are prohibited except repair of the foundation pit and securing of the surrounding buildings, roads and terrain.

Prosecutorial investigation

The Special Department for the Suppression of Corruption at the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office (VJT) in Belgrade has opened a case over the collapse. It has instructed the Anti-Corruption Service to gather information and documentation on the circumstances of the event. The inquiry includes checking whether the investor followed the prescribed construction procedures.

Prosecutors have requested complete records on site supervision and the investor's conduct from the Construction and Urban Inspection Sector of the Secretariat for Inspection, Oversight and Communication. From the City of Belgrade's Secretariat for Urban Planning and Construction Affairs, they have requested:

• the location conditions
• the building permit design
• the permit decision
• other documentation needed to approve the works

The prosecution will also examine two questions:

• whether citizens had previously warned inspection services about possible soil destabilization or other problems at the site
• if such warnings were made, how the inspection responded

The Second Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade is investigating the event separately within its own jurisdiction. According to Vreme, no criminal proceedings against the investor had been announced at the time of reporting, and no criminal responsibility had been established.

The Secretariat for Inspection said it has committed all available resources to identifying possible failures by all parties involved in the construction. It listed the developer, the responsible contractor, and professional oversight among those parties. The Secretariat said it will provide the documentation to prosecutors without delay. The developer and the on-site contractor declined to comment.

Earlier reports from residents

Residents told Telegraf.rs that they had raised concerns about the site for about two months before the collapse. They said the soil had been breaking away continuously and that they had held blockades and protests.

Marko Mladenović, a representative of the "Moje naselje" (My Neighborhood) initiative, told N1 that the group reported a collapse in the foundation pit to the inspection in early June. He said they received a response only in July, and that the only order issued then was to patch the asphalt. Mladenović also said the site holds a building permit, but that according to the central registry (CEOP), registration of the works had not been completed.