No life lost in Niger building collapse – NSEMA

The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) has said that no life was lost in a building collapse in the Sabon-Gari area of Minna metropolis in Niger.

The Director-General of the agency, Alhaji Abdullahi Baba-Arah, confirmed this in a statement in Minna on Saturday.

Baba-Arah said the agency received a distress call at about 3:15 p.m. on Friday about a building that collapsed in the Sabon Gari area of Minna.

He said the agency alerted the emergency response agencies for search and rescue operations.

“The search and rescue operations were conducted by officials of NSEMA, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Urban Development Board, and the State Environmental Protection Agency in conjunction with the Federal Fire Service.

“The police, NSCDC, NDLEA, the Red Cross, vigilant groups, and some volunteers also joined,” he said.

He said that five people had been rescued with varying degrees of injuries, while two others escaped unhurt, adding that “no one was trapped.”.

According to him, preliminary investigation shows that the two-story building was meant for residential purposes and was later converted into a warehouse.

The director general said the owner of the building had no approval to convert it to a warehouse as the building was poorly constructed with substandard materials.

Baba-Arah said the warehouse was stocked with soft drinks from about 25 trucks, which overpowered the structure, resulting in its collapse.

He said the state’s Urban Development Board has ordered the complete demolition of the building, adding that those injured were receiving treatment in a hospital within Minna metropolis.