By Nkechi Eze
Seven persons were injured on Friday after a two-storey building under construction collapsed in the Jikwoyi area of the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the Federal Capital Territory.
Emergency responders said rescue operations were immediately launched to ensure that no one remained trapped beneath the rubble.
In a statement issued by the Head of Public Affairs of the FCT Emergency Management Department, Nkechi Isa, the building was said to have collapsed at about 11 a.m. while construction workers were on site.
According to her, members of the department’s Search and Rescue Team reported that about 17 workers were on the upper floor of the structure when it suddenly gave way.
“Seventeen workers were on the upper floor of the building when it collapsed, injuring five workers and trapping a lone male who was at the ground level of the building,” Isa said.
Emergency teams were able to rescue the trapped victim from the debris while the injured workers were evacuated for medical attention.
She disclosed that the victims were taken to the Sisters of Nativity Hospital, where they are currently receiving treatment and are responding positively.
Rescue and safety officials from several agencies were deployed to the scene of the incident, including the National Emergency Management Agency, the Development Control Department, the Engineering Department of the Federal Capital Development Authority, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Federal Fire Service, and the Nigeria Police Force.
Isa added that excavation at the site was continuing until the rubble is completely cleared to confirm that no other victims remain trapped.
“Excavation of the incident scene is still ongoing until ground zero to ensure that no person is trapped in the rubble,” she said.
In a related incident, a fire outbreak later engulfed part of a car sales and service centre along the Kubwa Expressway in Bwari Area Council of the FCT.
The fire reportedly started at about 12 noon at the premises of Car Earloha Chery Center.
Head of the FEMD Search and Rescue Team, Monday Adie, confirmed that no lives were lost in the fire incident.
According to him, staff members of the centre quickly evacuated vehicles from the premises after initial attempts to contain the fire using extinguishers failed.
The blaze, however, completely destroyed a section of a building within the complex, while equipment and important documents were also consumed by the flames.
Emergency responders later attributed the cause of the fire to an electrical fault.
Personnel of the FCT Emergency Management Department, the Federal Fire Service, the FCT Fire Service and the Nigeria Police Force were deployed to the scene to contain the situation and secure the area.
