Collapsed building: Four killed, two-year-old, five others rescued

Four persons were killed and six others rescued, including a two-year-old child, after a two-storey build crumpled like a pack of cards yesterday morning at the Owerri Urban Police Area Command of Owerri, Imo State.

Eye witnesses’ accounts said that the building collapsed while occupants were still sleeping. The incident occurred around 4am. This would be the fifth building collapse within the last one month.

As at the time of filing this report, six persons have been rescued, including a two-year old baby and a Youth Corps member.

The corps member was said to have just concluded his service and was waiting to sign off in December. The lifeless bodies of four of the occupants were retrieved during the rescue operation.

One of the victims was trapped in the rubble; his head was free of the rubble, but his body trapped. His pains were clear as he tried to keep up his ebbing strength. Heavy duty machines had to be deployed to get him out.

A resident in the community said: “The property was a one storey building, but later, an additional building was added on top by the landlord. In fact, we heard that a landlord in the adjacent building to the collapsed one reported to the relevant authorities, that the building was unsafe. But nobody paid him any attention.”

A woman and her husband, who were rescued from the rubble, said three of their children were still trapped. The rescue workers, with their excavators, were seen working to unearth those still buried.

Another eyewitness, Obosi, said: “The building made a cracking noise before its collapse.”

A worker in the building explained that he was given N30, 000 to pay the labourers. He added that it was by sheer miracle that he escaped death.

He said: “The N30, 000 given to me to pay the labourers is buried in the rubble. The money is gone.”

The owner of the building is proprietor of Govons Veterinary Centre.

Enraged that the foundation of the building was faulty and building standards were not adhered to, Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State ordered that the building next to the collapsed should be demolished immediately. The building is also said to belonged to the Govons Veterinary Centre.

Okorocha said: “I was shocked to hear of this building collapse. In this disaster, six people were rescued while four persons are confirmed dead. I learnt that Owerri Capital Development Authority had initially sealed this structure against further work, but the landlord stubbornly carried on with the construction; the landlord even added additional floor to the existing storey building. The next building, I understand, is owned by the same landlord. So, I have ordered that the two buildings go down without delay to safeguard further occurrence and also to serve as a deterrent to overzealous landlords and contractors who are involved in this type of mess.”

The Governor continued: “Government henceforth will setup building departments separate from OCDA for standards and regulation. Qualified engineers are henceforth to sample, test and supervise every structure and their construction in the city and suburbs. We, as a government, can no longer fold our hands and watch landlords and unqualified engineers waste or endanger the lives of our people.”

The Governor offered to pay the medical bills of the injured while urging the rescuers not to stop work until they are satisfied there was no more victims under the rubble.