60 persons escape death as hotel collapses in Ebonyi

Charles Onyekwere, Abakaliki

No fewer than 60 persons on Wednesday evening escaped death in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi state capital following the sudden collapse of Metro View Hotel, one of the popular hotels in the state.

The hotel is located close to Presco Campus of the Ebonyi state University, Abakaliki in the heart of the city.

A member of the hotel management, Chief Austin Orji, who spoke to journalists on behalf of the company, said they had noticed a crack on some of the pillars holding the building and they immediately cordoned off the side of the building and started renovation, adding that it was in the process of the renovation that the building collapsed.

Orji said those who lodged in the hotel were outside the building for a seminar when the incident happened, stressing that no life was lost.

However, Chief Ejem Okoro, special assistant to Governor David Umahi on capital territory, said the hotel would remain sealed pending the conclusion of investigation by the state government.

Our correspondent recalls that the hotel was commissioned on May 28, 2005 by former Governor Martin Elechi.