No fewer than five persons have died, and fifty are trapped in South Africa after a five-story apartment block under construction collapsed on Monday.
The BBC reported that officials in the city of George, Western Cape province, have said that 26 people have been pulled from the wreckage and taken to hospital, but there were dozens more workers on the site when the building collapsed.
More than 100 rescuers sniffer dogs with heavy lifting equipment were deployed overnight to locate those trapped in the building
The majority of the workers who were on the construction site are still unaccounted for, and it has been a long and slow process to bring survivors out.
Two of those pulled from the wreckage died of their injuries. Another three deaths were reported later by medics.
At the scene on Tuesday morning, emergency workers were taking turns to work the small site, removing concrete blocks and debris by hand.
Every so often, the team leader raised his fist, calling for silence.
The site has been cordoned off from the public. But many people were still standing around the perimeter in shock and disbelief.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said his thoughts were with the families of people who died in the incident and called for the investigation to “bring closure to the community and prevent a repeat of this disaster.”
The city’s mayor, Ald Van Wyk, condoned the families “and all those affected who continue to wait for word of their loved ones.”
Officials said they had established contact with some of those under the rubble. At least 75 workers were thought to be on the site when the collapse happened.
Photos of the area show a wholly flattened construction site, with parts of the building’s roof lying atop the rubble.
The cause is under investigation. Video footage taken nearby showed a massive cloud of dust as the building fell.
