At least three construction workers have died in a devastating accident after a scaffolding collapsed at a construction site in Germany.
The three workers whose identities were not revealed by authorities lost their lives when the scaffolding fell down an elevator shaft inside a building on Monday, 30th October.
At least one worker suffered life-threatening injuries while another one is reported missing in the incident that occurred at the building site at the Ueberseequartier neighbourhood, in the HafenCity quarter, in Hamburg, Germany.
Hamburg’s fire service stated that the scaffolding had been set up at the elevator shaft. They did not disclose why it collapsed and fell from the eighth floor.
Authorities revealed that several workers found themselves under the rubble after the scaffolding collapsed, It is still unclear how many were on it at the time of the incident at 9.10am.
Recovery workers going through and removing debris piled up from the building’s basement to the second floor are expected to continue the operation until the evening.
Additionally, between 1,300 and 1,500 workers were instantly evacuated from the site following the accident.
Spokesperson Philipp Baumann from Hamburg’s fire department said: “The operation of the Hamburg fire department will extend for several hours into the evening hours.
“The difficulty, of course, is that we have a lot of scaffolding parts here that need to be secured and we first have to work our way down to the deployment site, floor by floor.
“We have three floors here where we have to push debris aside and secure it.”
Baumann continued: “Currently a very difficult technical rescue operation by fire brigade rescuers is underway. The fire service is working flat out.
“We know of at least three deaths that we can definitely confirm in this confusion.”
Around 150 rescue workers, paramedics, and a police helicopter were deployed on-site, claimed media.
It is currently unclear how many people were injured, however, officials stated that about 700 construction workers were affected by the incident.
The State Criminal Police Office said they began on-site investigations to determine the cause of the collapse.
A police spokesperson said: “It is still too early to assess the cause of the accident.”
The Ueberseequartier neighbourhood is one of the largest construction sites in Hamburg spreading over an area of around 14 hectares (34.5 acres).
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Story By: Georgina Jadikovska, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
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