One Dead, Four Injured As Building Collapses After Thunderstorm In Delta 1
Tragedy

One Dead, Four Injured As Building Collapses After Thunderstorm In Delta

One person has been confirmed dead , while four others sustained varying degrees of injury as a one- storey building collapsed following a thunderstorm in Asaba , the Delta State capital .

It was gathered that the building located behind the Police Officers’ Mess in Okwe , Oshimili South Local Government Area, collapsed around 5 pm on Saturday .

The building , which belongs to 79 -year -old Group Captain Sam Akariwa ( retd ) , was still under construction and collapsed while workers were still on the site , leaving one person dead and four others injured .

The Director -General, Delta State Emergency Management Agency , Mr Daneil Okpor, said at the scene of the incident that the building collapsed as a result of structural defects .

He stated , “We got a call about a building collapse in Okwe this evening ( Saturday) and we came here and discovered that the local government chairman had swung into action by mobilising everyone to rescue those trapped .

“We gathered that thunder accompanied by lightning struck and that made the building to collapse . That could play a role in the collapse , but the structural work of the building is very poor .

“Five persons were trapped and we were able to rescue all of them ; they are now receiving treatment in hospital; only one person is confirmed dead . As we leave here , we are going to hospital to know the condition of the injured .”

The Chairman of the local government council , Mr Uche Osedebe , attributed the collapse of the building to structural defects and lack of professional expertise .

He said , “My observation here is that there is a structural defect and that led to the collapse of this building . People should always employ the services of professionals and get building approval before commencing development from what I saw here , there was no building approval .

“Now , we have lost a soul and those who are in hospital , we don’t if they are going to survive because of the severity of the injuries they sustained .”

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