Seven persons were rescued with injuries after a supermarket building located along Nnebisi road in Asaba, Delta State capital collapsed Thursday night.
The survivors including the wife of the owner of the supermarket and her friend were rescued from the collapsed building at about 7:00 p.m.
The building which is a duplex was formerly used as Delta State secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state capital.
The incident caused traffic grid lock on the Nnebisi road as two fire trucks owned by the Delta State Fire Command found it difficult to manoeuvre through the narrow road.
Apart from the fact that several sacks of rice were scattered under the debris of the building, a lucky staff of the supermarket said 600 bags of rice was offloaded at the first floor of the supermarket in the morning hours which led to the collapse of the building.
Officials of the State Red Cross and operatives of the Delta State Police Command had a hectic time controlling bystanders at the scene.
A relative of the proprietor who simply identified herself as Jumoke was in tears as she was being attended to by Red Cross officials.
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity suggested that the building may have collapsed due to the huge number of bags of rice loaded on the first floor.
Secretary to the state government, Chief Patrick Ukah, confirmed the figure of the victims, assuring that proper investigation will be carried out.