Death toll from Nigeria building collapse rises to 22

As rescue operation enter the third day, Nigerian officials say the death toll from a collapsed 21-storey building in Lagos has increased from 6 to 20 as at Wednesday. 

The structure building located on Gerrard Road, Ikoyi collapsed on Monday afternoon, trapping more than 50 construction workers inside. 

Ten bodies had been recovered by Tuesday with many more, including Mr Femi Osibona who owns the building, still trapped in the rubble. 

An official with the National Emergency Management Agency, Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, said a total of 20 bodies, including that of Mr Osibona’s personal assistant, have been recovered. 

Friends and family members of those trapped have appealed to rescue agencies to allow members of the public to assist in the recovery process. 

“The operation is going on and we will not leave until we are able to account for everybody. We are responsible for the people of the state; our focus is on saving lives,’’ Lagos state deputy governor, Mr Femi Hamzat, said on Tuesday when he visited the accident scene. 

It has also emerged that the building had been flagged by authorities over structural issues. 

“This site place was sealed for about four months because our agency came in to do structural tests and saw some anomalies. We shut it down and said those things should be corrected. They were making corrective actions when this happened. At the time of the collapse, they were not really constructing,” he said, adding that investigations will reveal what really happened. 

“The building was approved for 21 floors three years ago not 15 floors…it’s the construction that failed, apparently.” 

Meanwhile, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has suspended Mr Gbolahan Oki, the general manager of Lagos State Building Control Agency,  for alleged acts of indiscretion. 

“The government will surely find out what went wrong and punish those indicted,’’ he said.