It's Happening....
Building collapse kills 1, injures at least 6
- Details
- Category: Ningbo District
- Published: Tuesday, 08 April 2014 15:25
Part of the five-storey building, or 15 out of its total of 40 apartments, in a residential quarter of Fenghua collapsed at 8:45 a.m. last Saturday. One person has died in hospital after being rescued from the rubble of a residential building that collapsed in Fenghua City, a city under administration of Ningbo. The female victim was among seven people pulled out of the debris. Rescuers have confirmed that no other residents have been buried in the debris.
The brick-and-concrete structure was part of a community housing 40 families named Jujing Condos. Developed by Fenghua Real Estate Development Co., and designed by Fenghua Municipal Building Design Institute, the buildings were built in 1994 by Xiangshan No.1 Construction Company. The collapsed building was a five-storey building of 15 apartments in the community.
Top officials of Zhejiang Province ordered for the utmost efforts in the search for those trapped and the treatment of those injured in the accident. Firefighters, soldiers and a medical team were called to the scene soon after the building crumbled shortly. Meanwhile, local authorities are urged to start an overall check-up over all residential buildings and guarantee the safety of residents.
During a citywide safety inspection late last year, the building was identified as dangerous, said Zhu Jianhong, the party chief of Jingping Neighborhood in Fenghua, on a press conference last Saturday afternoon. The building was reinforced, but the situation was not considered serious enough to merit an evacuation, he said.
On the second news conference held at 19:00 last Saturday, Zhuo Houjia, a deputy mayor of Fenghua, said that relevant departments have begun to relocate residents living in the building and four buildings nearby.
Investigation into the cause of the accident is already underway. A panel has been set up to investigate into the cause of the accident and bring those responsible to book.
