NO fewer than six persons were injured following the collapse of a three-storey building under construction in Jikwoyi within the Abuja Municipal Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory.
According to the Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Department (FEMD), 17 workers were on the upper floor of the structure when the building caved in. Nine persons reportedly came out unhurt.
The head of the Department of Public Affairs of the FEMD, Nkechi Isa, explained in a statement that rescue operations were done with immediate effect to ensure that no one was left trapped in the rubble.
“The FEMD search and rescue team said 17 workers were on the upper floor of the building when it collapsed, injuring five workers and trapping a lone male who was at the ground level of the building,” she noted in the statement.
She added that the injured workers, along with the rescued male, were taken to the Sisters of Nativity Hospital in Jikwoyi, where they are said to be responding to treatment.
Our correspondent reports that the scene was jointly cordoned off immediately by the police, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigerian Red Cross, the Federal Fire Service, officials of the FCT Administration, as well as representatives of CGC Construction Company.
Meanwhile, authorities of the Nigeria Police Force have vowed to question critical stakeholders who were responsible for the approval, issuance and inspection of the construction site.
The commissioner of police in the FCT, Ahmed Sanusi, who disclosed this when he led journalists to the site, said the command would invite all individuals and authorities responsible as part of efforts to ensure accountability and prevent future occurrence.
