A church in South Africa on Thursday collapsed as congregants in Dlangubo begin series of activities to mark the Easter festivity.
Local media reported that over 13 people have been confirmed to have died after a wall of a Pentecostal church collapsed.
There are reports of several others sustaining injuries from the disaster at the Pentecostal Holiness Church.
Most of those injured are receiving medical treatment at a hospital in the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Minister of Labour Mildred Oliphant is quoted by News24 as saying that the incident “happened as congregants were preparing to rest, when a large part of the front wall collapsed causing the traumatic disaster.”
According Oliphant “it is even more devastating that the majority of the deceased are women and a child of 13 years.”
#Churchcollapse Investigations are underway at Pentecostal Holiness Church in eMpangeni, KZN. It’s been a bad start to the Easter weekend with 13 people dying when a section of a wall collapsed on them. #eNCA pic.twitter.com/lQpPKXdsNz
— Siphamandla Goge (@SiphamandlaGoge) April 19, 2019
On Friday congregants of the church said special prayers for those who died from the incident as investigations begin.
But Oliphant who is a member of the church explained that “We understand from the preliminary reports that this area [on Friday] experienced inclement weather conditions with heavy rainfall and violent storms”.
The minister assured that “The government and municipalities will be working with the church and the families in an effort to mitigate the impact of this disaster.
It is heartbreaking that the Easter holidays have commenced with such a catastrophe.”
Source: Africafeeds.com
