Five die, others injured as building collapses

AT least five people have died and nine others injured after a two-storey building that was under construction collapsed at Sembeti area, Moshi District in Kilimanjaro region.

Confirming the incident on behalf of the Kilimanjaro Regional Commissioner (RC) Mr Nurdin Babu, Moshi District Commissioner (DC), Mr Abbas Kayanda said the incident occurred  at around 9pm on Sunday night.

He further said: “Preliminary investigations show that the building collapsed and three persons died on the spot, while two others died while getting treatment.”

Adding: “Nine were injured and rushed to the nearby Marangu Hospital and one of them, who was in a serious condition, was again transferred to KCMC Zonal Referral Hospital (KCMC ZRH) for further attention.”

According to him, it was suspected that one of 30 labourers at the construction site was trapped under the rubbles.

Mr Kayanda, who is also chairman of the Moshi District Security Council, visited the area of incident immediately after the incident was reported and assured that the efforts were underway to remove the debris as search for missing person(s) continued.

“Out of total 30 workers, two were initially missing but one of them was found still alive. The rescuers are continuing to look for the other person who is still missing,” he said.

On his part, Kilimanjaro Regional Police Commander (RPC) Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Simon Maigwa, said following the accident, officers of the Police Force and those from the Fire Brigade were dispatched to the scene.

“May I take this opportunity to commend the residents of the area for their cooperation during the accident as well as Marangu Hospital attendants, who responded quickly after the injured were sent to their facility,” he added.

Elaborating, he noted that a special probe team will be formed to investigate the reason(s) for the collapse of the building, adding that as part of the investigation, the proprietor, who was in Dar es Salaam when the incident occurred, will be contacted to provide information concerning the ongoing construction of the building before it collapsed.