Tragedy struck tragic in Enugu yesterday when an uncompleted four-storey hotel building collapsed at Independence Layout, killing one person and injuring four others.
The building, said to contain more than 100 rooms, had reached the fourth floor when part of the structure suddenly gave way in the early hours, trapping workers who were staying at the site.
One of the workers was reportedly sleeping on a bench within the compound when the building collapsed. He was later found dead.
The impact also severely damaged the portion of the structure that remained standing, raising fears that more people could have been trapped beneath the rubble.
However, the swift arrival of emergency responders helped avert a greater tragedy, with four people rescued alive from the debris and taken to the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital for treatment.
As of yesterday afternoon, rescue operations were still ongoing, with four excavators deployed by the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority (ECTDA) digging through the rubble in search of possible survivors or additional victims.
Speaking at the scene, the Executive Chairman of ECTDA, Uche Anya, described the incident as involving a developer who allegedly failed to comply with building regulations.
Anya said the property was approved in 2021, before the current administration, but subsequent inspections revealed what he described as serious structural integrity concerns and non-compliance with the approved plans.
According to him, the agency had issued a stop-work order and sealed the site about six months ago because of the violations.
“This property collapsed in the early hours of the morning. We arrived here around 6:00 a.m. We met one of the securitymen, who said that six people slept in the uncompleted property, but one of them was not around when the incident occurred.
“The government emergency services arrived, and we started rescue operations. Four people, right now, are in the hospital receiving treatment. I believe there could be one more person in there, and that is why you see all this rescue effort ongoing.”
Anya said he personally led an earlier inspection of the property, during which the agency identified what he called “serious integrity issues” and breaches of the 2021 approval.
He added that the representative of the owner, who reportedly lives abroad, had been engaging the agency in recent weeks to address the violations.
The official said the owner’s representative had also been handed over to the police to assist with investigations into the collapse.
“This is really a very unfortunate situation,” he added.
Also speaking at the scene, the Director of the Enugu State Fire Service, Okwudiri Oha, commended the coordinated response of the Red Cross, Enugu State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), ECTDA, Enugu State Ambulance Services, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and other responders.
Oha said the rescue teams initially established that six people were expected to be at the site, although one had left before the collapse.
He said four people were initially rescued, with two sustaining minor injuries, while another person was later recovered from the rubble.
NEMA Information Officer in Enugu, Ezeani Nnanyelugo, confirmed that four survivors had been taken to hospital and stabilised, while one body had been recovered.
He said the situation could have been worse, noting that the site had previously been sealed by the state government.
The Executive Secretary of SEMA, Chinasa Mbah, said rescue workers would continue excavating the entire site to ensure that nobody was left beneath the debris.
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