A four-storey building nearing its completion at4amWednesdaycollapsed in Oko community, Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, killing three persons and injuring one.

According to the residents of the area, the rear end of the building collapsed shortly after a heavy downpour.

They said that the deceased persons went in to sleep with the hope that further collapse would not occur.

The building is suspected to be a private hostel accommodation for students of Federal Polytechnic, Oko.

In a chat with News Express, one of the residents of the area who gave her name as Ifeoma narrated that one of the workers had warned his colleagues not to pass the night in the building but they refused.

She narrated that she “heard him warning them not to sleep in the building since a section of the building had collapsed but they refused. They replied him that nothing would happen.

“Even, they persuaded him to go in with them which he initially did but later came out of the building”.

She said that another survivor of the tragedy, a student of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, whose name she gave as Samuel sustained deep injury on his arm when the first collapse took place.

Bodies of the victims have been recovered and taken to an undisclosed mortuary.

It was not clear what the cause of the building collapse was but sources blamed usage of inferior building materials.

Efforts to ascertain the owner of the building and the contractor proved abortive as the residents denied having knowledge of their identities.