Rescue teams are working tirelessly to save trapped survivors in South Africa after a building collapse on Monday. Out of the 75 construction workers on site, at least five have died and around 50 remain trapped under the rubble in the coastal city of George. By Tuesday morning, 26 workers had been rescued and taken to the hospital, while only 11 of the remaining trapped individuals have been contacted. The cause of the collapse is still unknown.
The priority for rescue teams is to safely extract all those still trapped, which is expected to be a challenging and time-consuming effort. Security camera footage captured the moment when the building collapsed near the city centre. President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed condolences to the affected families and urged investigators to quickly determine the cause of the incident to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Authorities have opened an investigation into the collapse, as well as a case with the police. The George Municipality confirmed the death of five individuals and provided updates on the medical conditions of the injured workers. As rescue operations continue, the hope remains that more survivors will be found and brought to safety.