TRAGEDY IN GERMASOGEIA - A SECOND DEAD PERSON WAS PULLED OUT OF THE RUBBLE OF THE COLLAPSED APARTMENT BUILDING - ''I DON'T KNOW IF SUCH A TRAGIC EVENT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE IN CYPRUS'' SAYS THE SHOCKED MAYOR OF AMATHUS

 

TRAGEDY IN GERMASOGEIA - A SECOND DEAD PERSON WAS PULLED OUT OF THE RUBBLE OF THE COLLAPSED APARTMENT BUILDING - ''I DON'T KNOW IF SUCH A TRAGIC EVENT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE IN CYPRUS'' SAYS THE SHOCKED MAYOR OF AMATHUS - Filenews 11/4 by Ioanna Mantziipa

The tenants of an apartment building in the Germasogeia area experienced shocking moments, when within a few seconds one side collapsed like a house of cards. Foreigners of African and Egyptian origin lived in the apartment building.

After hours of efforts, a person was pulled out of the wreckage around 17:30, who was found dead. Around 19:30, a second dead person was recovered.

Three people were taken by ambulance to the hospital, however their condition is out of danger.

Since noon, a gigantic operation has been set up with the assistance of the Fire Service, EMAK, Civil Defense, Ambulance Service, EOA Limassol, while an excavator and trucks were mobilized to remove the rubble. A crane was also needed to support part of the apartment building that was about to collapse.

The deputy mayor of Agios Athanasios, Marinos Kyriakou, pointed out in his statements to journalists that they do not yet know if there are others under the rubble. He confirmed that the apartment building has been deemed dangerous and that duplicate letters have been sent by the EOA to the owners. He noted that they had been sent in the past by the municipality of Germasogeia, which warned the owners that there was a problem with the building and that it should be renovated. "I don't know if such a tragic event has happened before in Cyprus. For a building to collapse and we have a dead person or dead  people," said a shocked Mr. Kyriakou, who is currently the mayor of Amathus, due to the absence of the mayor.

In his statements, the spokesman of ADE Limassol and head of the TAE, Costas Michael, stated that around 1:30 in the afternoon a message was received to the Police about the collapse of an apartment building in the area of Germasogeia. Members of the Police, Civil Defense, Fire Service, Local Government authorities, as well as the Ambulance Service immediately rushed to the scene. It was found that the entire eastern part of a three-story building had collapsed. Since the collapse, four people have been taken to hospital, three to Limassol General Hospital and one to a private hospital. They have injuries, but their health condition is out of danger. In addition, after superhuman efforts, a person was pulled out of the rubble of the building, who is dead. At the same time, the efforts of the members of the Fire Service, EMAK and Civil Defense to move the rubble continue, in order to determine whether there are other people trapped in the wreckage. As he mentioned, the hope is expressed that there will be no more victims, however this will become clear through the process of removing the debris. He also noted that the operation to move the rubble is particularly difficult and may continue in the coming days. Regarding the building, he stated that it consisted of a total of 11 apartments, while according to the preliminary examinations it seems that about 20 people lived in them, clarifying, however, that this number is under reservation.

According to testimonies, some of the occupants managed to get out of the building on time, while others were absent at the time of the collapse. The building had a total of 10 apartments, in which at least four people each lived, which intensifies the concern about the exact number of occupants.

Residents of the area told Filenews that they heard a loud noise, but initially thought it was explosions from firecrackers, due to the Resurrection.  It is noteworthy that, according to the tenants themselves, this apartment building had been deemed unsuitable.