Details emerge: Anambra Building Disaster: Mother and Daughter Perish in Three-Storey Collapse

A devastating incident in Anambra State has led to the tragic loss of a woman and her 14-year-old daughter, following the collapse of a three-storey building under construction. The unfortunate event occurred around 9:45 pm on Wednesday, at Anata Anaba, Okpoko, situated within the Ogbaru Local Government Area. The mother and daughter were tragically trapped inside their residence, a neighbouring bungalow, when the structure caved in.

Eyewitnesses recounted a harrowing experience, describing how the building emitted a loud noise, with visible cracks appearing in its walls just before it crumbled, plunging residents into chaos and fear. While the mother and daughter succumbed to the disaster, emergency personnel were able to rescue other individuals who were caught in the debris, transporting them to a hospital for urgent medical attention.

An eyewitness stated, "The woman and her daughter were in their apartment in a nearby bungalow when the three-storey building collapsed and trapped them. Before the building caved in, it made a loud noise as the walls started making cracking noises before falling one after the other. Some other people who were also trapped in the rubble were later rescued and rushed to the hospital by an emergency response team that mobilised to the scene to evacuate victims."

Local residents expressed their prior concerns about the construction, highlighting that the waterlogged terrain was fundamentally unsuitable for a building of three storeys. They alleged that the initial engineer on the project had advised the builder to limit the structure to two floors due to the poor ground conditions, a recommendation that was reportedly disregarded. According to the residents, a different engineer was subsequently hired to proceed with the construction of the three-storey building.

The deceased were identified as the landlady of the adjacent bungalow and her youngest child. Chimobi, the woman's son, revealed that three family members were present in their apartment when the collapse occurred. He narrated, "I was outside at the time of the incident. But my mother and my sister were in the bedroom when the building collapsed directly on them, leaving them with no opportunity to escape. It’s unfortunate. We had earlier warned the builder about the danger posed by the structure and we were joined by other residents in calling for the construction to be stopped, but our concerns were not heeded."

On Thursday, the Anambra State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Chijioke Ojukwu, confirmed the incident, labeling it as regrettable. Commissioner Ojukwu, accompanied by Noble Igwe, the representative for Ogbaru One Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly, visited the site. The Commissioner attributed the collapse to the use of substandard construction materials and disclosed that a stop-work order had previously been issued for the building.

Ojukwu further explained, "The structure was an illegal building and we had ordered its demolition and the land is going to be forfeited to the state government. We are investigating other unapproved buildings under construction in the area. It collapsed under the weight of negligence and poor-quality construction. It fell over and killed the residents of a neighbouring bungalow, a woman and her child."

This tragedy follows a similar incident in September in Lagos State, where one person died and two others were rescued after a two-storey building undergoing manual demolition collapsed in the Aboru area. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, confirmed that incident, which took place at No. 42, Governors Road, Aboru, in the Alimosho Local Government Area, noting that the agency's Alpha Eagle Response Team was immediately deployed.