Rescue activities at the site of the collapsed four-story building at Dape in Life Camp, Abuja, resumed on Tuesday at 8 a.m., according to the Federal Fire Service.
At the scene of the disaster, Mr. Emeribe David, a Superintendent of Fire, told the News Agency of Nigeria that all agencies involved agreed to resume the rescue mission on Tuesday morning.
According to NAN, the building, which was described as a hotel under construction, collapsed around 4 p.m. on Monday, trapping an unspecified number of workers.
David, who led the team of firefighters to the scene, stated that the fire department received a distress call around 4 p.m. and arrived on the scene approximately 15 minutes later.
He stated that his team collaborated with other agencies to save the lives of those trapped in the wreckage.
He identified some of the agencies as the FCT Emergency Management Agency, Federal Road Safety Corps, National Emergency Management Agency, and security agencies, among others.
“Immediately the Fire Service received the call, we were deployed to the scene with a fire truck and ambulance crew to see what we can salvage.
“We do not know the number of people that were trapped, but we will figure that out when we continue the operations in the morning,” he said.
Earlier, the Director-General of FEMA, Dr. Abass Idris, told journalists that nine persons have so far been rescued as of 7:44 pm.
A NAN correspondent who was at the scene reports that the agencies involved in the operation closed the site around 10 pm, while security officials were drafted to guard the area.