The Director of the Enugu State Fire and Rescue Service, Chief Okwudili Ohaa, has credited the swift mobilisation of emergency resources by Governor Peter Mbah with the successful rescue of five occupants trapped in a collapsed building in Enugu metropolis.
The uncompleted four-storey building, located along Ogbaru Street, off Alvan Ikoku Street, Independence Layout, Enugu, collapsed in the early hours of Sunday.
Ohaa, who is also the state’s Chief Fire and Rescue Officer, told journalists that all five persons believed to have been inside the building at the time of the incident were successfully rescued.
He said four of the occupants were rescued alive and conscious, although they sustained injuries, while the fifth person was found unconscious and immediately evacuated to a health facility.
Ohaa commended Governor Mbah for promptly mobilising relevant emergency response agencies and equipment to the scene.
The agencies involved in the rescue operation included the Enugu State Fire and Rescue Service, Nigerian Red Cross Society, Enugu State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Enugu State Ambulance Services, the Police and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
Also involved were the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Enugu Capital Territory Development Agency (ECTDA) and a Chinese construction company, which deployed four heavy-duty cranes to assist the rescue operation.
According to Ohaa, the governor alerted him early Sunday morning after receiving information about the collapse, prompting the immediate deployment of rescue personnel and extrication equipment to the scene.
He said the deployment of heavy-duty cranes, bulldozers and excavators significantly aided the operation and helped rescue all five occupants.
“His Excellency, Dr Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, must be commended for mobilising adequate rescue equipment such as heavy-duty cranes, bulldozers and excavators, which ensured the rescue of the five persons,” Ohaa said.
He explained that rescue officials initially relied on information provided by the security guard at the site to determine how many people might have been trapped.
“As rescue officers, what we did was to ask the security man how many people were here. He said there were supposed to be six. One person had left before it happened.
“So, we were able at that initial time to rescue four persons. Out of the four, two sustained minor injuries and they were all rushed to a health facility for proper checks,” he said.
Ohaa added that the fifth occupant was later recovered unconscious and taken to hospital by the Enugu State Ambulance Services.
The NEMA Information Officer in Enugu, Mr Nnanyelugo Ezeani, also confirmed that five people were rescued from the building.
Ezeani said the situation could have been more severe, noting that the site had previously been sealed by the state government over regulatory concerns.
“One person among six residing in the collapsed building was not on the site as at the time of the incident, while five others were rescued and taken to the hospital,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Executive Chairman of the ECTDA, Mr Uche Anya, attributed the collapse to the alleged failure of the developer to comply with approved building regulations.
Anya said the agency had earlier taken regulatory action against the property, including issuing a stop-work order and sealing the site.
According to him, the building was originally approved in 2021, before the commencement of the current administration, but subsequent inspections revealed serious structural integrity concerns and non-compliance with the approved plans.
“This property was approved in 2021 before the advent of this administration. But usually, we have a habit of stocktaking and checking on every construction at every stage,” Anya said.
He said he personally led an inspection team to the site, following which the agency issued a stop-work order and subsequently sealed the property.
“I personally issued the first ‘stop work order,’ which, due to the violation, resulted in our sealing the place over the last six months outrightly,” he said.
Anya disclosed that representatives of the property owner, who he said resides abroad, had been engaging the agency over the past 30 to 40 days in an effort to address the regulatory concerns.
He described the collapse as unfortunate and said the owner’s representative had been handed over to the police to assist with the ongoing investigation.
“This is really a very unfortunate situation,” Anya said.
