COREN Confirms Death of Two in Anambra Building Collapse

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

The Council for the Registration of Engineers in Nigeria (COREN), has confirmed that two persons died in a collapsed building in Anambra State at the weekend.

Confirming the incident yesterday, the council noted that the building was owned by a lawyer name withheld).

It was gathered that the two-storey building located at Oraifite, Ekwusigo Local Government Area, was undergoing reconstruction on its defective second floor when it caved in.

A source said: “Two persons lost their lives in the building collapse in Ibolo, Oraifite in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State.

“The deceased were said to be working at the two storey facility when the incident occurred at the early hours of Friday.

“The engineer in charge had instructed the workers to remove the second floor which was not properly constructed. It was in the course of the removal that the building caved in.

“As of Saturday, one of the deceased workers had been removed from the debris, while the other was yet to be found.”

Reacting to the development on Sunday, the State Chairman of COREN, Mr. Victor Onyeanyana Meju, said the collapsed structure claimed the lives of two carpenters who were roofing the building.

Meju said that he visited the site of the collapsed two-storey building along with members of the State Technical Committee of the Engineering Regulation and Monitoring Inspectorate Anambra State.

He said; “The building which is still under construction was commenced two years ago. The committee while in the course of their preliminary and visual site seeing noted unprofessional practices, which are against engineering codes and standards in the country and beyond.

“Samples of concrete, rods, blocks and other aggregates from the site have been collected for proper laboratory test to ascertain their strengths.

“The state’s Technical Committee of the Engineering Regulation and Monitoring Inspectorate and the Anambra State Physical Planning Board have sealed the site.”