No deaths, 12 rescued after Sierra Leone building collapse

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone – A Sierra Leone official says 12 people have been rescued and no one was killed after a three-story building under construction collapsed.

Southern Province Assistant Police Inspector General Kapri Saidu Kamara said Thursday that four of the rescued were treated and released and eight others are still being treated.

He said the building collapsed Wednesday as concrete was being poured onto the third floor because the pillars were not strong enough. Many construction workers were able to escape the scene along the Bo-Kenema highway.

Joseph Kpanabom, the Southern Regional Surveyor, asserted to local newspaper POLITICO there was poor construction and sub-standard materials used.