Emergency officials have rescued two people from the collapsed Benin Central Hospital in Edo State, including one engineer expatriate, working at the building when the accident happened.

Reports say a section of the 102-year-old hospital’s west wing, the new Accident and Emergency Ward which was undergoing construction, collapsed at 5 p.m. while workers were still on the job.

Engineers at the site said the building’s collapse was caused when a rope was cut on one of the cranes carrying concrete from the base of the four-storey building.

The crane then crashed into the building, destroying the third, second and third floors. Rescued victims are said to be receiving medical treatment at the intensive care unit of the hospital and are responding well to treatment.

Chief of Staff to the state Government, Mr Osarodion Ogie; Majority Leader of the state House of Assembly, Mr Philip Shuaibu; Commissioner for Health, Cordelia Aiwuzia and the Secretary to the State Government, Dr Simeon Imuekheme were all at the site monitoring the situation, the Vanguard reported.

Shuaibu said, “From what I gathered, a crane fell after its rope cut and crashed into the floors below. As you can see, rescue efforts are in progressing. We had sighted the other person and he will be brought out.”