By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has committed the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) to undertake an Occupational Health and Safety Act investigation of the collapsed building in George once the rescue and recovery interventions have been completed.
This comes after a multi-storey building under construction in Victoria Street, collapsed on Monday afternoon with 75 construction workers on the site at the time of the incident.
According to the latest statement issued by George Municipality on Wednesday morning, the number of patients admitted has increased to 36, with 39 people still unaccounted for. Seven people have been declared dead.
Inspectors are on site, and were dispatched [on May 7]. The department is receiving real-time information on the ground from our inspectors and the inspector-general,” Nxesi said.
Nxesi said it is imperative to recommit to the principle that no job is worth risking the safety or lives of employees.
“Every effort must be made to prevent similar incidents in the future. Redoubling efforts to promote a culture of safety, vigilance, and accountability within organisations is paramount.
“It is a collective responsibility to honour the memory of those lost by ensuring that their lives were not lost in vain. Strengthening the commitment to health and safety is essential. Let us work together to prevent such tragedies from occurring again,” Nxesi said.
Nxesi conveyed his heartfelt condolences to family and friends of the deceased construction workers involved in the incident and wished the survivors a speedy recovery.
“No words can adequately express the sorrow felt for the lives lost and the anguish experienced by those awaiting news of their trapped loved ones. Our thoughts are with them during this difficult time,”Nxesi said.
He added the department will work through the teams on the ground and outlined protocols to communicate and update the public.
However, in the immediate aftermath of such a tragic incident, it would be unfair and insensitive to speculate as to the causes,” said Saice VP Werner Jerling.
It will take diligence and careful investigation to establish what caused this failure, and take the steps necessary to ensure it does not happen again.
“Saice reaffirms its commitment to supporting comprehensive investigations into the collapse, and calls for transparency in sharing findings to prevent similar incidents in the future,” said Saice CEO Sekadi Phayane-Shakhane.
Further, CESA also urged patience and restraint as investigations proceeded, and emphasised the importance of waiting for expert analysis before drawing conclusions, said CESA CEO Chris Campbell.
“No self-respecting engineer will hazard a guess publicly without a thorough investigation. We therefore support CESA member V3 Consulting Engineers, which has been appointed to undertake the investigations.