Four persons have been seriously injured on Thursday when a 2-storey building collapsed off Okilton Drive in the Ada George area of Obio/Akpor local government area of Port Harcourt in Rivers State.
The building was said to be under construction at the time of collapse, and no reasons had been established for the calamity.
An official of the state government said that the injured victims are currently receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital.
However, the state government has ordered for the immediate arrest of the site engineer as well as immediate closure of the building site, even as the search and evacuation of the debris has continued to ensure that nobody got trapped in the rubble of the collapsed structure.
In a statement by the Secretary to the State Government, Tammy Danagogo, the state government has also ordered an investigation into the cause of the collapse to hold any responsible individuals accountable.
The state government warned professionals in the built sector to comply with necessary standards and regulations.
The government said it will not tolerate any form of deviation from the laid down regulations.
Commissioner for Special Duties, Emaka Woke, who conducted an inspection of the building site on behalf of the governor, assured that the state government will embark on proper investigation of the structure with a view to unravelling the cause of the building collapse.
The commissioner confirmed the fact that no lives were lost, based on the available records, but four persons sustained injuries.
He emphasized that individuals involved in the building process will be summoned to provide details of their roles.
On his part, the engineer assigned to conduct the integrity test assured that the exercise would commence on Friday and would be completed within two weeks to determine the cause of the collapse.
But he observed that the collapse could be attributed to foundation failure or failure of the structure itself.
Comments