A section under construction at the Stephen Keshi International Stadium, Asaba, the Delta State capital, has collapsed, reportedly killing three persons. Scores of others were injured and were rushed to the hospital.

Among the dead, it was learnt, were construction workers at the site of the building.

The two-storey is under construction in preparation for the 21st National Sports Festival (NSF) to be hosted at the stadium from November 28, this year.

A team of journalists who went to assess the level of damage were reportedly bundled out of the stadium on the orders of the chairman, Delta State Sports Commission, Tonobok Okowa.

“Mr Okowa, who doubles as Co-Chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the festival tagged Asaba 2022, ordered his boys to confiscate the working tools of the journalists,” according to one report.

“The boys, in carrying out the order, beat the journalists, heating them with sport gun and other objects,” the report said.

It would be recalled that the collapsed building was recently inspected by the Minister of Sports, Sunday Dare, who gave a pass mark, saying that the facilities were 80% ready for use.

However, some structural engineers expressed concerns over the speed at which the construction was going, doubting the integrity of the buildings under construction.