Douala, Cameroon –
The death toll from building collapses in Cameroon has more than doubled as rescue teams continue to search for survivors, officials said Monday.
At least 33 people were killed when a four-storey building collapsed into smaller buildings in Douala, Cameroon’s largest city, on Sunday morning, Housing and Urban Development Minister Celestine Kecak Coates said.
Courtes said more bodies were recovered from the rubble by rescue teams on Monday morning and some died in hospital from their injuries. Five of the more than 20 injured are said to be in critical condition.
The building had collapsed and was in a bad state of disrepair in the Endogbon district, he said. Fire Chief Abdel Kadry. “A resident of a neighboring house told us there were so many cracks in the walls of the building before it collapsed,” he said.
Authorities said more than 200 people live in both affected buildings. It’s unclear how many people were in the house at the time of the collapse.
Rescue efforts are still ongoing.
Cameroonian President Paul Biya has asked the housing ministry to assess the extent of the damage.
According to local residents, building collapses are frequent in Douala, sometimes due to natural disasters such as landslides, and sometimes due to poor construction.
The Douala City Council is now demolishing homes in areas at high risk of flooding and landslides. The building that collapsed on Sunday did not have a demolition sign.
