Twenty-five workers trapped in the seven-storey building under construction, which collapsed in the highbrow Banana Island in Lagos State have been rescued.
Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, yesterday, ordered a stop of all building construction process on Banana Island to give room for a comprehensive audit by the officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA).
The state’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Gbenga Omotoso, who disclosed this on Thursday in a statement, said the state government had launched a probe into the collapsed building.
Omotoso said, “Nobody died in the incident, which occurred on Wednesday, as of the time of this report. Twenty-five people were rescued from the site.
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‘’Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) scanned the building with a high-precision 3-D Laser Imagery System for life and found no evidence of anyone trapped in the rubble. A roll call has also been done by the site supervisors, with everyone accounted for.
“Lagos State Emergency Management Agency has continued with the excavation of the site, using the architectural designs. The site has also been divided into quadrants for a painstaking search and rescue operation.
‘’Presently, quadrants 2 and 3 have been levelled to ground zero, having completed the search operation. Quadrants 1 and 4 are ongoing.”
He noted that Physical Planning and Urban Development Commissioner, Bamgbose Martins, an engineer; and Special Duties Special Adviser, Mobolaji Ogunlende, are coordinating the operations while LASEMA Permanent Secretary, Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu is leading the operations. He said the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, had visited the site and hospitals where victims of the incident were admitted, noting that of the 25 persons rescued by LASEMA, 16 who had moderate injuries were admitted at General Hospital, Odan, Lagos Island and Police Hospital Falomo for treatment and care.
“Nine others with minor injuries, such as bruises, were treated and discharged at the site by Lagos State Ambulance Services (LASAMBUS),” he said.
The commissioner assured that the state government, as a matter of policy, would be responsible for the emergency treatment and care, including the medical bills of the victims on admission.
‘’It will also provide post-trauma counselling support and care for all victims through the Lagos MiND programme (Mental Health in Development) – a free mental health counselling and support service provided by the Ministry of Health,” Omotoso added.
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