Construction disaster in the center of Madrid. The services provide details about the victims
On October 7, around 1 p.m., the center of Madrid was shaken by a huge bang. Near the Opera metro station, in one of the busiest areas of the Spanish capital, the ceilings of a six-story building from 1965 partially collapsed during renovation works. The structure collapsed from the top floor to the ground floor.
The facility was modernized at the request of the Saudi investment fund RSR, the owner of the property. The work was carried out by the Spanish company Grupo Rehabilita. The building was to be transformed into a four-star hotel.
The article continues below the video
Many hours of rescue operation after a building collapse in Madrid
A large-scale rescue operation began immediately. According to the daily “El Pais”, 18 fire brigades, 13 ambulance units and teams with tracking dogs and drones took part in it. Rescuers spent many hours manually removing debris to reach trapped people. This was accomplished around 6:30 p.m. The services confirmed the death of all four missing persons.
The first two bodies were found on Tuesday evening, the next two, according to the “20 minutos” daily, around 2 a.m. One person was seriously injured, and several others suffered minor injuries or received psychological help. According to the Madrid emergency service, quoted by Spanish media, they died this 30-year-old woman and three men aged 30 to 50 — Dambéle, Alfa and Jorge.
“20 minutos” reports that the men came from Mali, Guinea and Ecuador. They were employees of a construction company and had an employment contract. The woman was an administrative employee.
— The search was very difficult and dangerous. Firefighters worked manually in unstable conditions, said the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, who interrupted his visit to London to appear at the scene of the tragedy.
He assured that the reconstruction was carried out in accordance with applicable law. — The building had all the required permits and the documentation was complete. From an urban planning point of view, everything was done legally, he said.
The case is being investigated by the Madrid police, the labor inspectorate and construction experts. The services analyze both technical reasons and possible negligence of the contractor. Spain's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, expressed her condolences to the families of the victims and announced inspections of all similar investments in the capital.
Neighboring buildings were evacuated for the duration of the operation, but residents were able to return to them the same night.
