Three people have been rescued from the site of a building collapse at North Industrial Area in Accra, while it is believed three others may still be trapped beneath the rubble.
The Communications Team Member of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Alex King Nartey, disclosed this during a briefing with journalists at the scene.
According to him, the three rescued victims have been taken for medical treatment, while rescue teams continue efforts to locate and save those still missing.
Mr. Nartey explained that rescue operations have been slowed by the lack of earth-moving equipment, forcing the Fire Service to wait for assistance from other agencies.
"As at now, the Fire Service doesn’t have earth-moving equipment, so we’re waiting for the military to bring one. The Accra Mayor has also arranged for one. We tried to create some space to bring them out, but it’s not big enough, so all we can do now is wait," he said.
He added that the Fire Service was the first responder at the scene and would have immediately deployed such equipment if it had access to it.
"If the Fire Service had earth-moving equipment, we would have brought it with us and started working since we were the first responders. Moving forward, we hope the government will get the Fire Service some earth-moving equipment," he noted.
Mr. Nartey further revealed that initial reports suggested two people were trapped under the debris, but new information indicates a third person may also be missing.
"From what we are gathering, there might be a third person trapped. He was recording a video of the scene after the initial collapse when another part of the building reportedly collapsed on him. We will, however, confirm this when the earth-moving equipment gets here," he said.
Rescue efforts are ongoing as authorities work to clear the debris and determine the exact number of people trapped.