George Collapsed Building: Mass Memorial Service to be Held

Picture courtesy: (BRIEFLY News) Avbob has offered to help with the burials of those who died in the multi-story apartment building that collapsed in George, Western Cape.

(The Post News)– A mass memorial service will be held today for those who died in the collapse of the multi-story apartment building. The multi-story apartment building, which was under construction, collapsed on Monday, May 6, in George, Western Cape. 

The death toll of this tragedy rose to 34 after a man, who was among the ten survivors in the hospital, succumbed to his injuries over the weekend. Confirming the death, police spokesperson Liutenent-Colonel Malcom Pojie said that the number of fatalities resulting from the collapse had risen to 34.

Rescue and recovery efforts on the site were completed on Friday, May 17, after the emergency services and disaster management teams had worked on the site for 260 hours. The rescue team successfully retrieved 62 individuals, and of the 62, only 28 survived. Of the 28, nine are currently in the hospital. 

The site was declared a crime scene as the rescue team handed it over to the South African Police Service (SAPS) to formally conduct its investigation. Upon concluding its investigation, the SAPS is expected to hand over the case to the Employment and Labour Department for it to also launch its official investigation.

A South African funeral home, AVBOB has offered to assist with the burials of the victims at no cost; however, families will only cover the transport expenses. According to Avbob spokesperson Gert Niehaus, for foreign nationals, the funeral home will provide coffins and emblems and arrange for all the required paperwork for the families to transport the deceased across international borders.

While the families cover transport expenses, Avbob will provide discounted transport rates for the funerals within SA and across the border.

Meanwhile, four of five construction workers died when an embankment collapsed in Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) on Saturday.

It is believed that the five men were on site when the incident occurred, and the one that survived is recovering in the hospital, while the other four were declared dead upon extraction on the scene.

KZN police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netsiunda, said that based on the information they got, 14 construction workers were at the base of the escarpment building gabion retaining wall when the wall collapsed, trapping five workers underneath.

He added that an inquest docket has been opened by the police.

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Nomfundo Ngobese

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An experienced journalist who believes that giving voice to the voiceless can lead to constructive social change. For me, journalism is more than just writing stories; it is about enlightening, educating, and entertaining people of all ages, rich and poor, literate or illiterate. As a news editor at TPN, my responsibility is to guarantee people encounter all of these features through well-written, properly structured, and easy-to-understand stories, while also ensuring that our agency adheres to the essential principles and values of journalism.

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