A four-storey building under construction at Independent Layout, Enugu, collapsed early Sunday, leaving one person feared dead and four others rescued from the rubble.
The building, reportedly a hotel, had five people sleeping inside when it collapsed. Emergency workers arrived around 6am and began rescue operations.
ECTDA Chairman Uche Anya said the incident was “a case of one of the recalcitrant developers who failed to comply with building codes”.
He said the site, approved in 2021, had been sealed after officials found serious integrity issues and non-compliance. Anya said he personally led an earlier inspection and issued the first “stop work order”. He added that the owner’s representative had been engaging the agency over the past 30 to 40 days to address the violations.
Anya said: “I have handed the representative to the police, not necessarily for detention, but to help with the investigation. But this is really a very unfortunate situation.”
Fire Service Director Okwudiri Oha said four people were rescued, with two sustaining minor injuries.
NEMA’s Ezeani Nnanyelugo confirmed that one body was later recovered, while SEMA Executive Secretary Chinasa Mbah said the entire wreckage would be excavated to ensure nobody remained trapped.
