Contractors of collapsed George building ‘fully committed’ to assisting authorities as rescue efforts ramp up

JOHANNESBURG - Liatel Developments, the contractors of the multi-story apartment building that collapsed in George, says it will cooperate with all investigations to determine the cause of the tragedy. 

In a statement released on Monday morning, its director Theuns Kruger said their priority was to assist with ongoing rescue efforts.

“We are fully committed to cooperating with the authorities to determine the cause of this incident. We will ensure that a thorough investigation is conducted to understand what led to the collapse,” Kruger said.

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Seventy-five construction workers were on the site when the building crashed on Monday. So far, seven people have been confirmed dead, and 36 others have been retrieved from the rubble.

The Western Cape government has appointed structural engineering firm V3 to probe the cause of the tragedy.

Meanwhile, George municipality Mayor Leon van Wyk says rescuers are still able to speak to some of the people who are trapped.

“The difficulty is breaking up concrete slabs without injuring the victims down below. It's a very delicate situation."

He said the clock was ticking to find more workers.

"The international standard is 72 hours - we effectively have about another day to put in all the effort. So, there is a massive team of people on site. To me, what is being undertaken is world-class effort."