"It is a six-storey building, in which 18 families lived, belonging to the Real Estate Investment Fund - FUNDINVEST, whose anomalies were recently communicated by the building administration. Following the technical inspection, measures were taken for the immediate vacancy of the building", said the GPL in a statement.
The building was located on Avenida Comandante Valódia, one of the main arteries of the capital and, according to Fundinvest, a private fund, "was evacuated in time with due monitoring by the competent authorities", with the residents being "temporarily rehoused".
The cause, advances a press release from Fundivest, which cites a report by the Angolan Engineering Laboratory, was a "rupture of the pipes in the water distribution networks of the neighboring building", which contributed to the loss of support capacity of the soil of the foundation.
According to the Spokesperson for the Civil Protection and Fire Services, Superintendent Firefighter Félix Domingos, more than 250 employees and various means have been working for around 11 hours to remove the rubble.
Several videos circulating on social media show the moment of the collapse and some people hurriedly fleeing, before the building crumbles into a cloud of dust.
Next to the building, which also had commercial spaces, were parked several vehicles that were destroyed, verified Lusa on the spot.
