Pretoria - One person was killed and 14 rushed to hospital yesterday morning when a four-storey building under construction plunged on construction workers at the Jakaranda Centre in Rietfontein.
According to police, the incident happened at around 11:30am. The cause of collapse of the structure remains unknown.
Deputy Chief of the Tshwane Emergency Services, Charles Mabaso, said the injured were taken to the Meulmed Mediclinic Hospital and Pretoria West Hospital.
At the scene, it was established that of the people who needed to be rushed to hospital for medical attention, only four appeared to have serious injuries.
The rest had moderate to minor injuries.
Speaking from the scene while emergency services personnel were creating a safe passage to remove the body of the dead, Mabaso said it was important that safety was prioritised to ensure the wreck could not harm anyone else.
Mabaso said: “The deceased is a 46-year-old man. His identity has been withheld as his family have not been informed.”
He said a roll call was conducted to confirm that nobody was left behind before emergency services left the scene.
The police K9 team also searched to see whether there were any more bodies on-site but they did not find anything.
“The police will continue their own investigations, and obviously the Department of Labour will also come in and conduct its own thorough investigation."
The mall was extending its structure and there were indications that workers had been pouring cement on the top floor, which gave way.
Pretoria News