* No life lost, say officials
One of the indoor sports halls under construction at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, Delta State, collapsed on Thursday, 18 days to commencement of the 21st National Sports Festival dubbed – “Delta 2022.”
Peculiar Ultimate Concerns Limited, a contracting company founded in 2008, is in charge of the project.
The Chairman of Delta Sports Commission, Mr. Tonobok Okowa, however, argued through a statement that what happened cannot be described as building collapse.
Okowa, who doubles as President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), said the incident occurred after one of the cranes carrying construction materials to the other side of the structure “mistakenly” touched an iron that fell.
“So, you can’t call that a collapse issue,” he argued.
Initial reports said three persons were feared dead while scores sustained injuries in the incident, although officials of the government debunked the claim.