Two seriously injured by falling blocks near construction site

A barber and his customers were, on Monday, November 16, 2015, rushed to hospital after they were hit by falling blocks and planks from a nearby construction site at the Hospital Roundabout neighbourhood in Bamenda.

The barber’s shop is separated by less than 80 cm from the four storey structure under construction on the road from the Hospital Roundabout leading to the Food Market.

Eyewitnesses said a line of blocks from the fourth floor reportedly gave way with blocks and planks falling on the roof of the adjacent building housing the barber’s shop.

The barber escaped with minor injuries mostly on the hand, while his customer was hit on the head but is said to be under a stable condition in the hospital.

The building in question belongs to the Guzang Cooperative Credit Union and the construction is carried out by a renowned Bamenda-based construction company. Workers at the site refused to comment about what happened and referred to company officials.

This accident raises questions about the security at construction sites in the heart of residential areas which are found at close proximity to other houses in plots owned by completely different persons.

Recently, Northwest Governor called in experts to survey and ascertain the state of the CamCCUL Building at the Commercial Avenue after some neighbours were forced to flee because of rumours that the building was about to collapse.

Land-holding in the town of Bamenda at times poses serious problems to businesses and individuals intending to construct high raised structures because they are not permitted to encroach into neighbouring lands which are often occupied by houses.

Many people own small patches of land at times not big enough to occupy this structure talk less of fencing off the perimeter as stipulated by the law to prevent workers and passersby from the construction site.