Five persons have been rescued from the site of a collapsed building in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
Police Public Relations Officer for the FCT Police Command, Josephine Adeh, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
Adeh, a superintendent of police, said the building, situated in Vidaz Estate, within the Sabon Lugbe extension of the FCT, caved in on Saturday.
“Our preliminary investigations reveal that the building was previously demolished by the FCT Authorities due to its location in an illegally acquired area,” she said.
“Regrettably, the structure was further compromised by scavengers who had been tampering with the remnants for scrap metal, ultimately leading to its secondary collapse.
“A total of five individuals were successfully rescued from the debris, and there were no reported fatalities.
The FCT police spokesperson called on the public to “respect the boundaries of demolished structures and construction sites, ensuring their safety and preventing similar occurrences in the future.”
Earlier, eyewitnesses said no fewer than 40 persons were trapped in the ill-fated building.
This is not the first time that the nation’s capital will witness a case of a building collapse.
Weeks back, a two-storey residential building collapsed in Abuja’s Kubwa area.
In that case, four people were rescued, while an unconfirmed number of others were initially feared trapped.
The Kubwa building was located close to Cupid Hotel on Sultan Dasuki Way.