By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The tally of retrieved people pulled from the debris of the collapsed building in George has risen to 36, on Wednesday morning, after a multi-disciplinary rescue team of more than 200 emergency services continued working throughout the night.
Seven people have died and 39 remain unaccounted for at present after the building, in Victoria Street, collapsed on top of 75 construction workers just after 2pm on Monday.
At the scene on Tuesday night there was a feeling of pride among emergency personnel as they retrieved another man’s body from underneath the rubble, more than 24 hours after the tragedy.
About 200 emergency personnel from the City of Cape Town, Worcester, Breede Valley and volunteers assisted in finding the trapped workers.
The building consisted of underground parking, and four floors. The floors were not yet completed.
“We are in contact with 11 people” trapped under rubble, Colin Deiner, head of rescue operations, told a news conference in Cape Town.
Life had been detected under three areas of the site.
In a statement, the contractor, Liatel, expressed its sadness at the tragedy.
“Our hearts go out to all those impacted by this tragedy, and we extend our sincerest sympathy to the victims and their families.
“At this time, our main priority is to assist the ongoing rescue efforts in any way possible.We are coordinating closely with emergency responders and authorities to provide support and resources for the rescue operations,” the statement said.
Western Cape Premier Allan Winde has urged an end to the “political blame game” and to instead focus on efforts to save as many lives as possible in the building collapse.
“This is not a time to play politics. We have 39 people trapped underneath the collapsed building, and quite frankly, we need to allow these professionals to save these lives. That is our main focus.”
“I have noticed some of the fake news out there. One of the political tweets said 22 people are dead. This is unacceptable. We have families waiting in the city hall on news about their loved ones,” he added.
President Cyril Ramaphosa sent condolences to the families of those affected and called on investigators to work quickly to rescue survivors.
“Investigations into the cause of the incident must aim to bring closure to the community and prevent a repeat of this disaster,” Ramaphosa said.