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Tag: building collapse

  • BREAKING: Many student trapped as two-storey school building collapses in Jos

    BREAKING: Many student trapped as two-storey school building collapses in Jos

    A secondary school building has collapsed in the Busa-Buji area of Jos North Local Government of Plateau State, trapping many students under the rubble.

    The two-storey building of Saints Academy was said to have collapsed at about 11 am on Friday, and as of the filing of this report, many students are still trapped.

    TheNewsGuru.com(TNG) gathered that an immediate intervention is currently ongoing as emergency response teams have arrived at the scene to rescue the children. Residents of the community before the arrival of the response teams are said to be using their bare hands in the rescue efforts.

    Parents of students and community members have trooped to the site, and the atmosphere is tense and has palpable anxious moments.

    Injuries are already confirmed and fatalities are rumored

  • 7 rescued in Lagos building collapse

    7 rescued in Lagos building collapse

    The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) has rescued seven people who were trapped in a two-storey building that collapsed in Mushin.

    The agency’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, confirmed this in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.

    He said the incident happened at No. 12, Cameron Str., of Ewenla, Mushin, Lagos.

    “The LASEMA Response Team arrived at the scene of the incident and discovered that a newly constructed two storey building had collapsed.

    “Seven people, three females and four males, were rescued alive and taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

    “The agency’s search and rescue team have searched the rubble and can confirm that there is no victim underneath the collapsed building.

    “The area has been cordoned off and operation is still ongoing,” Oke-Osanyintolu said.

    He added that the agency and other key responders were on high alert.

    He also urged Lagos residents to remain calm and refrain from any non-essential travels due to the incidence of flash flood across the state.

  • UPDATE: Casualty figures rise at collapsed Papa Ajao Mosque

    UPDATE: Casualty figures rise at collapsed Papa Ajao Mosque

    A total of three persons lost their lives and seven persons with various degrees of injuries were rescued at the building collapse incident at Papa Ajao, Mushin, Lagos.

    Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday in Lagos.

    “Following an extensive exercise, final casualty report on the above incident is that there were 3 fatalities and 7 casualties varying in severity.

    “The affected buildings have been leveled to ground zero,” Oke-Osanyintolu said.

    He listed emergency responders at the scene of the incident to include the agency’s response team led by the Permanent Secretary, LRU Fire unit and Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service.

    Others included the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA),  NEMA, Nigeria Police, LNSC, FRSC and LASAMBUS.

    Oke-Osanyintolu added that the operation has been concluded.

    Earlier, LASEMA had disclosed five persons had been rescued and one dead body recovered from the collapsed mosque at Papa Ajao, Mushin, on Sunday.

    Dr Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, made this known  in a statement in Lagos.

    Oke-Osanyintolu said that the mosque located on Yusuf Street, off Ladipo Road, Papa Ajao, collapsed while prayer was ongoing.

    The permanent secretary at the time said that search and rescue operations were taking place under his supervision.

  • Sanwo-Olu talks tough of menace of building collapse

    Sanwo-Olu talks tough of menace of building collapse

    Lagos State Government on Thursday reiterated its resolve to demolish buildings that fail its integrity test.

    Gov. Babjide Sanwo-Olu reassured of the step as 14 buildings in close proximity to the two that went up in flames at Dosunmu Market on the Lagos Island on Tuesday caved in to the fire.

    “A lot of residential apartments have been turned to warehouses. I am saying without any iota of doubt that more buildings will go down.

    “I just finished the assessment of a very unfortunate, but preventable disaster.

    “Access was denied to the first responder to the fire for a couple of hours. This fire started more than 48 hours ago and is still alive.

    “At the last count we have about 14 houses that have been affected and more may go down after the extensive test.

    “What I have seen here is what could have been prevented; we do not have a full report yet, so I do not want it to speculate.

    “From the initial report, it was gross carelessness,’’ he said at the site of the fire.

    Sanwo-Olu added that the Dosunmu Market would be closed indefinitely, but that government would assist those to be affected.

    “We will bring down any property that does not conform to our rules and regulations of construction.

    “We cannot allow anyone to put the lives and property of others and the environment at risk.

    “We will support those affected by the fire so they can get back on their feet, however.

    “There are more progressive things we ought to be doing than to be spending scarce resources on avoidable accidents,’’ the governor lamented.

  • Another five-storey building collapses in Anambra

    Another five-storey building collapses in Anambra

    The Police Command in Anambra has confirmed the collapse of a five-storey building under construction at Basden Street in Fegge, the commercial city of Onitsha, Anambra.

    On Sunday, the command Public Relations Officer, DSP Tochukwu Ikenga, who confirmed the incident to NAN, said details of the collapsed building were still sketchy.

    According to him, our operatives are currently there now, though the details are still sketchy, as soon as I get the full details I will get back to you,” he said.

    An eye witness, who pleaded anonymity, said that the building was meant to serve as commercial purposes on completion.

    The source said that the building collapsed in the early hours of Sunday while some of the construction workers were on the last floor.

    “The building started from the fifth floor to collapse. The building is at the finishing touches and the fifth floor was almost finished when it collapsed and other floors followed suit.

    “There are about two workers in the building that are trapped and those injured have been rushed to undisclosed hospitals,” the source said.

    Chinyere Nwoyethe, the Public Relations Officer of Anambra State Emergency Management Agency, said that they were yet to be informed about the collapsed building.

    The incident happened barely two weeks after a building collapsed killing five persons in Ochanja Market, Onitsha.

  • Anambra building collapse: Soludo expresses sadness, confirms five dead

    Anambra building collapse: Soludo expresses sadness, confirms five dead

    Gov. Charles Soludo of Anambra has expressed sadness following the tragic building collapse at Odu-Igbo Market, Ochanja, Anambra, that claimed five lives.

    Soludo, while addressing residents at the scene of the incident, on Tuesday, announced that 26 individuals had been rescued and hospitalized, while five persons died.

    He said that rescue efforts were ongoing to locate those still trapped under the rubbles.

    The governor described the incident as tragic and an incident that was not supposed to happen, as he emphasized his commitment in tackling the issue of illegal constructions and impunity in the state.

    He revealed that the collapsed building was erected by a private developer without government’s approval.

    According to him, the contractor at his own cost will come and put down the illegal buildings he erected here.

    “They are all going to come down. My government did not approve of this building. We will redesign this area and build it properly.

    “All buildings constructed without proper approval will be brought down henceforth, including structures currently under construction at other markets,” he said.

    Earlier, the Chairman of Ochanja Market, Mr Bonaventure Mmuo, thanked Soludo for his prompt intervention, pledging to disseminate the governor’s message to all market leaders in the state.

  • 80-year-old woman dies in Oyingbo building collapse

    80-year-old woman dies in Oyingbo building collapse

    Oyingbo building collapse has claimed the life of an 80-year-old woman and displaced seven families on Thursday.

    The Territorial Coordinator, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, confirmed the development to NAN in Lagos.

    Farinloye said the building had shown signs of distress for a very long time and finally collapsed partially on Thursday morning.

    He said two households were fortunate to escape from the building shortly before the incident occurred at about 7.45 a.m.

    “It was reported that the two storey building located at No 34, Oloto Street, off Borno way, Ebute Metta, Lagos Mainland Local Government Area with GPS coordinates: N6°28’42.09 – E3°23’11.09 had been showing signs of distressed earlier.

    “In order to prevent further threats to the residents of the neighbourhood, the officials of Lagos State Building Control Agency has commenced immediate and tactical demolitions of the remaining parts of the building,” Farinloye said.

  • Just In: Storey building collapses in Lagos, kills 80yrs old lady

    Just In: Storey building collapses in Lagos, kills 80yrs old lady

    Another building has collapsed in Lagos on Thursday morning when a woman said to be in her 80s, died during a partial collapse of a two-storey building located at number 34 Oloto Street, Borno Way, off Freeman Street, Oyingbo, Lagos Mainland Local Government Area of the state.

    The yet-to-be-identified woman died on the spot as a result of the impact suffered when the building collapsed on her.

    According to an eyewitness, Mr Kehinde Adeboye, the incident happened at about 7.45 am on Thursday, killing the old woman said to be in her early 80s.

    Sympathizers and other emergency responders raced to the scene to offer help in salvaging the situation.

    Permanent Secretary, of Lagos State Emergency Management Authority, LASEMA, Dr Femi Oke-Osanyitolu, confirmed the casualty, saying no record of further injury in the unfortunate incident.

    According to Oke-Osanyitolu, the agency received distress calls at about 8:30 am and the rescue team arrived at about 8:42 am.

    “The Agency responded to distress calls concerning the above and upon arrival
    discovered a storey building in a state of partial collapse.

    “Further information gathered at the incident scene revealed that an internal suspended beam in a room collapsed at about 7:45 am due to the ageing and lack of maintenance of the structure.

    “Unfortunately, an old woman died from the impact of the partial collapse.”

    Meanwhile, as of press time,10. am, a search and rescue operation was ongoing by the joint rescue team, while the scene has been cordoned off.

    Officials of the LASEMA Response Team, LRU, paramedics, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service and, Lagos Ambulance Service, LASAMBUS, are on the ground to ensure safety and sanity.

  • FCTA moves to combat menace of building collapse in Abuja

    FCTA moves to combat menace of building collapse in Abuja

    The Department of Development Control, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has set up a seven-man committee for the prevention of building collapse in the federal capital, Abuja.

    The Director of the department, Mr Mukhtar Galadima, told newsmen after the inauguration of the committee in Abuja on Wednesday that the move was part of proactive measures to address incessant building collapse.

    “We don’t have to wait for another building to collapse before we act. That is why we set up the committee to help investigate structures that are not structurally stable for human habitation.

    “It is good to go round and identify these structures, conduct integrity tests and where necessary provide for remedial measures and remove the structure if it is found not stable.

    “The committee will be looking out for structures that visually may look stable but not, and recommend an integrity test,” Galadima said.

    He added that the committee would also make recommendations on how to reduce the incidence of building collapse to the barest minimum in the FCT.

    He said that the committee would equally recommend who to be engaged to conduct the integrity test.

    According to him, the committee comprises representatives from the Council for Registered Engineers of Nigeria, Town Planners Registration Council and Builders Registration Council.

    Others are National Institute of Building and Road Research Institute and Standards Organisation of Nigeria among others.

    Describing the task as a “national call”, the director said that the committee had two months at the first instance to deliver on the task.

    Galadima warned that any official of the department involved in sharp practices would be dealt with in accordance with the civil service rule and other extant laws.

    The chairman of the committee, Mr Allabeh Ndirmbula, said that reasons for building collapse were many – materials, construction, design, misuse, quackery, ageing and disaster among several other factors.

    Ndirmbula, a former president of the Town Planners Registration Council, said that the committee would work to address, with focus on Phase 1 area of the FCT namely Wuse 1 and 2, Garki and Asokoro.

    “What has already happened, we can’t help it; but the future is what we are looking at. We want to make sure that from now on, we have a system that checks against building collapse,” he said.

    Also, Mr Ajibade Adeyinka, a Deputy Director in Development Control and Secretary of the committee, described the building industry as a “complex industry”.

    Adeyinka said that the industry had so many professionals working in the field and their job interrelated in the processes and procedures of erecting a building for a specific use.

    “However, there have been a lot of compromises along the way, from the developer to the owner of the building, to the professionals on site, issue of quackery and poor supervision and monitoring.

    “This committee intends to look at existing structures, processes and procedures and look at how to rejig it if there are issues.

    “When you talk about building collapse, we always look at buildings under construction, but we are also looking at buildings that have been completed and occupied,” he said.

  • Father, 2 sons confirmed dead in Anambra building collapse

    Father, 2 sons confirmed dead in Anambra building collapse

    At least three persons were confirmed dead in Sunday’s collapse of a-three-storey building under construction in Anambra community.

    The incident occurred at Egbu Umuenem, Otolo Nnewi community, Nnewi North Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

    The building collapsed at about 1pm, when the workers were said to be preparing to start plastering work.

    Eyewitness account said that the deceased, including a man and his two children, said to have reported for the day’s job, allegedly died on the spot.

    They were said to have been rushed to St. Felix Hospital, Nnewi, where they were confirmed dead.

    It was learnt that other workers, who were rescued from the rubbles, sustained varying degrees of injuries.

    They were also said to have been taken to the hospital for medical treatment.

    The Chairman, Council for Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), Anambra Chapter, Mr Victor Meju, led some state officials of the council to the scene.

    Addressing newsmen at the scene of the incident, Meju blamed the incident on poor foundation, concrete mixture and quality of materials as well as the non approval by relevant regulatory authorities.

    He said that the building would be sealed off and the owner, Mr Chukwunafu Anamanjo, invited for questioning and investigation.

    Also, the Transition Committee Chairman, Nnewi North LGA, Mr Chris Obiora, called on the people to always make use of certified engineers and other relevant personnel in the building sector for their construction works.

    Obiora further said that monitoring teams were also important in ensuring that builders stick to stipulated standards.

    When contacted for comments on the disaster, the state Police Command Spokesman, DSP Tochukwu Ikenga, said the command had yet to receive information about the incident.

    “I don’t have any information on it yet, but I will escalate the information to the Divisional Police Officer in the area for necessary action,” Ikenga said.

    NAN