- A building under construction collapsed in George on Monday afternoon.
- There were about 70 construction workers on site at the time.
- One body has so far been recovered from the rubble in the Western Cape, and 22 people have been rushed to hospital.
At least one person was killed and 22 others injured when a building under construction collapsed on Victoria Street in George, Western Cape province on Monday afternoon.
Surveillance camera footage from nearby showed the building collapsing around 2:09 p.m., sending up a huge cloud of dust.
Western Cape Police Sergeant Christopher Spieth said: “An inquest report was opened after the man's body was recovered from the rubble.”
According to the city, 22 people were rescued from the scene and taken to hospitals across the state.
Approximately 70 construction workers were present at the time of the collapse.
“Rescue operations are still ongoing and more than 80 rescue workers are on scene,” the city said in a statement Monday night.
The newspaper said 53 emergency workers from the City of Cape Town and Worcester Disaster Services were on the way.
Wouter Kriel, spokesperson for local government MEC Anton Bredel, said support along the way included three large crane trucks, heavy lift and technical equipment, and a structure collapse vehicle.
“Rescue operations will continue through the night.”
Bledel was on his way to the scene.
George Municipality spokesperson Ntobeko Mankwenkwe said the collapsed building was adjacent to the municipality.
“The structure was about four to five stories high and looked like an apartment complex.”
A construction site where many workers were injured. (offer/gift from donor)
“City employees will be stationed in front of this building collecting donations and distributing them to service employees.
“FThe families and friends of the construction workers involved in the incident have been given space to gather in the foyer of City Hall and will continue to do so. can help. ”
Garden Route Regional Municipality Commissioner Herman Peters said firefighters were called to help.
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Mario Ferreira, president of George's Gift of the Givers, said his team arrived about two hours after the collapse.
“Rescue teams are struggling to extract more injured people from the rubble. The cause of the collapse is unknown. It was a five-storey building and collapsed while workers were inside.
“We are preparing a soup kitchen. Our rescue team is on standby in Cape Town, waiting to be called.”
Rescue team at a construction site where many workers were injured. (offer/gift from donor)
The Western Cape Government is closely monitoring and will deploy resources to support the emergency response.
Prime Minister Alan Winde and relevant state ministers were briefed on the incident.
“All necessary support has been provided to emergency personnel to speed up the response. Authorities are now focused on saving lives, which is our top priority at this stage,” Winde said.
He asked the public to allow space for emergency workers to carry out their duties and not to put their lives at risk by going to the scene.
