Two die in Abeokuta building collapse

A four-storey ultra-modern market complex under construction in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital collapsed yesterday.

The building, which collapsed at 9am, trapped eight out of the 16 workers who had reported to work at that time.
The incident happened near the ever-busy Itoku market.

A signpost that survived the accident gave the name of the contractors as Validus Construction Services Ltd., while the Ogun State’s Ministry of Work and Infrastructure is the client.

The Southwest Zonal Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Sulaimon Yakubu, who spoke to journalists, confirmed that a total of 16 workers who reported for duty had been accounted for.

According to him, eight of them were rescued unhurt while eight were rushed to the hospital.

“Five of the eight at the State Hospital Ijaiye are still receiving treatment, two of them have discharged themselves while the remaining two had died,” he said.
As soon as news about the incident filtered, Abeokuta residents trooped to the scene en mass.

Governor Ibikunle Amosun raced to the scene as soon as the news got to him. He supervised the rescue team, which included men from the State Police Command, Civil Defence Corps and Fire Service personnel, officials from NEMA and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) were also part of the rescue team.

At a point, the contractor whose name could not be ascertained arrived the area and angry people attempted to mob him but managed to escape with the assistance of the Police who tear gassed the angry crowd.

Commissioner for Information, Dayo Adeneye, in a statement said the government would investigate the cause of the collapse.

According to him, Amosun had also pledged: “Integrity test will be conducted on the other part of the building to determine its fitness.”

Chairman of APBN in the state, Sola Adelakun, who spoke with reporters in a telephone interview, wondered whether an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was carried out before the project commenced.

Adelakun, a chartered Town Planner, said the contractors handling the project should be prosecuted if it can be established that the minimum building standard had been compromised.