A concrete floor being built inside a multi-storey building in Johannesburg collapsed on Monday, killing at least six people and trapping others under heavy debris, emergency officials said. The accident happened in Ormonde, an area in the south of the city.
According to Johannesburg Emergency Management Services spokesperson Xolile Khumalo, the floor on one of the upper levels suddenly gave way and crashed down onto workers below. Rescue teams rushed to the scene soon after the collapse. Khumalo reported that the rubble still trapped two people, and three others remained missing.
One person had been pulled out alive. She explained that the rescue work was very dangerous because parts of the building were still unstable and continuing to fall apart. The instability made it risky for emergency workers searching through the wreckage. Johannesburg public safety official Mgcini Tshwaku said the building was under construction at the time of the incident. It was not immediately confirmed whether all the victims were construction workers.
A large concrete slab pinned one of the trapped men, crushing his leg. Officials said that doctors might need to amputate the leg to free him safely. A surgeon from a nearby hospital was called to the scene to examine the injured man and decide the best way to help him. Tshwaku said the main focus was to rescue everyone still trapped.
After that, authorities will begin a full investigation to determine who was responsible for the construction work and whether proper building plans and safety approvals were followed. The tragedy happened after another deadly construction collapse in 2024 in the coastal city of George. In that accident, 34 workers sadly lost their lives when a building under construction came down.
It was one of the worst construction disasters in the country recently. After a long investigation, officials found that there were serious safety failures at the site. They said proper safety rules were not followed and important warning signs were ignored.
