Death toll in Nigeria high-rise collapse increases to 42, with 15 known survivors
- Total number of people who had been working on the Lagos site is unknown; 49 families have filed a missing-person report
- Cause of disaster not established but such tragedies common in Africa’s most populated country, with construction standards often ignored
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“We have a total of 42 bodies that have been recovered,” Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said on Saturday.
The 21-storey building under construction in the upscale Ikoyi district crumbled on Monday afternoon, trapping dozens of people working on the site.
As of Friday, the authorities had said that nine people had survived. Some of them were rescued alive, while others on the ground floor managed to escape unharmed.
Over the weekend, the number of survivors increased to 15 after six additional people who escaped the collapse were identified.
The total number of people on site is unknown but Sanwo-Olu said 49 families had so far filed a missing persons report and that “DNA examination was being undertaken on some of the bodies difficult to be identified.”
The governor said money was set aside to help families cover burial fees and that financial support was also offered to survivors. Search and rescue efforts were still ongoing on Saturday, the authorities said.
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The governor earlier described the incident as a “terrible national disaster” and said “mistakes were made from all angles”.
He set up an independent panel to probe the causes of the collapse and declared three days of mourning.
Building collapses happen frequently in densely populated areas of Lagos, which is home to some 20 million people.
Two other smaller buildings in Lagos also collapsed on Tuesday following heavy rains but no one was killed.
Poor workmanship and materials and a lack of official oversight are often blamed.
