MOTHER OF 3 KILLED AS BUILDINGS COLLAPSE IN OGUN
Omooba Risawe
A Housewife, Modupe Bankole has been killed in a house collapse in Abeokuta,Ogun State Capital,just as another seperate four storey building collapsed,but no casualty recorded.
The building collapse which claimed the life of the 51 year old mother of three occured in Olomore area of the town,that of the storey building happened at Leme community along Moshood Abiola Way.
At the scene of the storey building sources informed that,it was the developer who ordered the contractor handling the project to pull it down in order to avert mishap.
The developer, whose name could not be ascertained at press time, was said to have observed that some of the materials used by the contractor were of poor standard.
However,the husband of the deceased, Mr Samuel Bankole, while speaking with journalists said the family had been living in the building over 12 years ago.
Bankole who is a teacher at the Army Children School, Lafenwa, Abeokuta disclosed that he was preparing his lesson note when the incident suddenly happened.
He also recalled that, the owner of the building died about two and half years ago and the house was being managed by a caretaker.
“My wife told me in the house that she was going to prepare food. After finishing the preparation, she came to me and took a small mat and a pillow and spread it out to take breeze. She spread it even very far away from the collapsed decking’,he said.
“I was preparing my own note of lesson that time. I told her that when I finished writing, I will join her there. When I finished, I came out. Few children were moving up and down there until suddenly a neighbour called them and sent them on errand’.
“My last born came back from his place of apprenticeship and even slept beside the mother. He later left to see a friend. Shortly after, I just heard the sound of the collapsed decking over my head. I believed that since my wife was not directly under that thing, she was safe and I just ran outside and started shouting ‘thank you Jesus.’
He said,he believed his wife was hit by broken blocks from the structure,lamenting that his wife gave up the ghost shortly after she was taken to the hospital.
As at the time of a visit to the scene by our correspondent ,tenants were seen packing their belongings out of the building .
When contacted, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Urban and Physical Planning, Yetunde Dina, who also visited the scene, said the state government would investigate the incident.
Dina stated that the ministry would deploy engineers to the site and examine whether the structure was still in good condition or not,adding that the remaining structure may be pulled down if found defective.
