Two killed in building collapse

THE Pick n Pay building at Ondangwa, which also hosts the local Bank Windhoek branch, partly collapsed yesterday, killing at least two people.

Among the dead was a nine-year-old girl. Scores of other people were injured.The two businesses are just renting the premises.A manager at Pick n Pay, Ester Uushona, told The Namibian that there might be some of their workers among the victims. Uushona said the collapse of the wall caused damage to the entire building and also to their equipment. She said they still have to assess the extent of the damage. One of the cashiers, who witnessed the incident, Elisa Alugodhi, told The Namibian that as usual on Sundays, there were a lot of customers in the shop when the wall collapsed. She said the child who died was close to her till when the wall collapsed. ‘I knew there was a big problem. I jumped away, but I was injured in the leg by one of the customers who was also fleeing to safety,’ Alugodhi said.She described the collapse of the wall as resembling a ‘big explosion’, adding that she saw many people crying and screaming for help.Oshana Police Commissioner Ndahangwapo Kashihakumwa said the police rescue team found the bodies of a woman and a girl. He said the girl’s body was found near the till that was closest to the wall that collapsed, and the woman was found near one of the other tills. Kashihakumwa told The Namibian that several people were taken to Onandjokwe Lutheran Hospital, including three who were seriously injured.He said the names of those killed in the incident could not be revealed as their next of kin had not been informed by yesterday afternoon.He did not rule out the possibility of finding more bodies in the rubble.By late yesterday afternoon, the police were still searching for people who might be trapped under the rubble.Members of the Namibian Defence Force were also called in to help with the search.Bank Windhoek manager Eugen Cupido said they would soon start assessing the damage to bank property.

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