A three-storey building with four suspended floors, located behind the Anambra State House of Assembly, off Ekwueme Square in Okpuno, Awka, has collapsed.
The structure, which was still under construction and had reached the roofing stage, gave way at about 11:40 am on Thursday, throwing the area into confusion.
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Residents and passers-by were thrown into panic as reports indicated that several construction workers and other unidentified persons may have been trapped under the debris.
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Eyewitnesses said the collapse happened suddenly without any prior warning. They added that the number of those trapped could not be immediately ascertained.
Although the cause of the incident and the casualty figure are yet to be confirmed, officials from the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) and the state’s materials testing department were sighted at the scene conducting preliminary checks.
According to PUNCH correspondent, bystanders and concerned residents were making frantic efforts to rescue those trapped. However, the rescue process was slowed down due to lack of equipment and logistics, especially the absence of excavators.
One eyewitness explained, “The building collapsed this morning (Thursday) while some artisans were carrying out construction works at the roof. The structure made a loud noise as it caved in, and some workers were still inside. Nobody can say the exact cause for now, but government officials later arrived and said they were waiting for excavators before beginning rescue operations.”
The Chairman of COREN-ERM in Anambra State, Sir Victor Meju, confirmed the incident. According to him, “It was a five-storey building, with the sixth floor still under construction at the roofing stage. It is a private building, and information available revealed that the structure was roofed last Thursday.
“On-site preliminary investigation revealed that it was a vertically complete collapse to rubble. The collapse was as a result of poor concrete mixture and a likely foundation problem.The Ministry of Housing and the Awka Capital Territory Development Authority have been notified and are on the ground to supervise and support rescue operations.”
Meanwhile, when contacted, the spokesperson of the Anambra State Police Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said he had not yet been briefed but promised to make inquiries and provide an update.
