George – At least four construction workers have been confirmed dead after a five-storey building they were working on collapsed.
The building, where more than 70 construction workers were working, collapsed on Monday afternoon.
Western Cape local fire and medical services remain on the scene, where voices of tapped workers have been heard.
The National Disaster Management Center (NDMC) working with provincial and local Disaster Centers have also deployed teams to the scene of the collapsed building.
Rescue efforts continued Tuesday.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said: “All the necessary support has been offered to emergency personnel to expedite their response.
“At the moment, officials are focused on saving lives. This is our top priority at this stage.”
The Premier is receiving ongoing updates on the situation.
He has urged the public to allow emergency services officials the space to carry out their duties and not put their own lives at risk by traveling to the site.
Early Tuesday morning Algoa FM News reported that “the George Municipality has confirmed that as of 5:15 am on Tuesday, a total of four patients were declared deceased.
“The Municipality said 24 patients were removed from the rubble of the collapsed multi-story construction site on Victoria Street, leaving 51 still unaccounted for.”
Reporters on the scene have been asked to keep as silent as possible to allow rescue workers to hear any sounds made by people trapped under the rubble.
Drones were being used to pinpoint where trapped people were located under the rubble.
Canines were also on the scene helping to find trapped people.
