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Picture Courtesy: (News24/ Nicole McCain) The site of the collapsed multi-story apartment building will be handed over to the Department of Employment and Labor so it can begin its investigation.
(The Post News)– The Department of Employment and Labour will soon probe its investigation into the multi-story apartment building that collapsed while under construction. The fatal building, which claimed 33 lives, collapsed on Monday afternoon, May 6, in George, Western Cape.
After working on the site for over a week, the rescue team is expected to turn over the site to the Employment and Labour Department so it can begin its investigation. George Municipality said that it is finalising preparations so that the Employment and Labour Department can take control of the building and commence with its official probe.
According to the Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Anton Bredell, on Friday morning, the rescue team had removed the last of the building’s rubble and had not discovered any more bodies. The rescue workers will leave the scene and hand it over to the police so that they can complete their investigation.
Bredell added that the estimated number of workers was based on a list provided o by contractors who were working on the site on the day of the incident. He said he was relieved that the numbers were wrong and they were not searching for the 19 workers who they believed were still trapped in the rubble.
Previous reports stated that 81 people were on site when the building collapsed; however, the number has recently been changed to 62, and five workers have come out to confirm that they were not on site when the building collapsed.
On Thursday, the President of the Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, visited the site of the collapsed building and addressed the families of the victims. Ramaphosa assured the families that the government would assist them.
He also conveyed his condolences to the families who lost their loved ones and thanked everyone who lent a helping hand in any way since the building collapsed. He said that those who need to bury their loved ones in and out of South Africa will be assisted, and the families and victims will be compensated.
Furthermore, President Ramaphosa asked family members of the victims to exercise patience in looking for answers and promised them that the officials would be as transparent as they could be about the investigations.
As the numbers were revised, 62 workers were present on site when the building collapsed, and 10 are in the hospital, while out of the 33 that were pronounced dead, only four are yet to be identified.
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