8 dead, 15 rescued in collapsed building in Lagos

Eight dead bodies were recovered while 15 occupants were rescued after almost 24 hours of a rescue operation at the site of a collapsed building at No. 3 Massey Street in Lagos Island.

Emergency officials which comprise of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the state Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) Response Unit, Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS), Lagos State Fire Service, Civil Defence, among others are involved in the rescue operations which ended this afternoon.

Fourteen were initially rescued alive while two bodies were recovered as at 10 pm on Tuesday but the death toll rose on Wednesday as evacuation continued.

At the end of the recovery operations, a total of eight dead bodies were recovered at the scene while another victim, an 11-year old boy, was also rescued. It was gathered that the boy’s legs had to be amputated for him to be rescued.

[Read Also: 2-year-old, mother killed as building collapses in Lagos]

Preliminary investigations by emergency officials at the scene showed that the building collapsed as a result of its defective structure.

Besides, the building is said to be 40-year old, which was earlier built as a one-storey structure before additional storeys were added at “irregular interval”, according to a source.

An official who pleaded anonymity said, “Investigations also point to the siting of the mast which residents said were erected with heavy concrete while the mast itself is also heavy. A heavy generating set was also installed at the site of the building and residents say anytime the generator was put on, buildings around the area would be vibrating”.

Meanwhile, the Council for the Regulations of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) and the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) have commenced an investigation to determine the cause of the collapse.

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