A high-rise building’s collapse took the lives of 22 people in Nigeria on Wednesday. Rescuers were quickly at work and raced to find any survivors under the debris. Scores of survivors were found and pulled out, an emergency official told Reuters.

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A large mass of people gathered around the site of the accident in the commercial capital Lagos as they looked to gather information about their loved ones. Anxious family members waited as the rescuers removed chunks of masonry and mangled steel where the building once stood.

Lagos Ibrahim Fairnloye, the National Emergency Management Agency coordinator, spoke to Reuters via text messages and informed them of the death toll climbing to 22 following the discovery of several dead bodies during the night.

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Nine people were saved after they were pulled out alive. Reports on their injury status are not clear yet.

Surprisingly, building collapses are a common occurrence in Nigeria as people look to capitalise on the growing population of Africa’s most populous nation. The rules and regulations are not enforced correctly and the construction material’s quality is subpar.

The Lagos state government revealed that they took notice of some violations of building laws or agreements during construction earlier this year. However, they did not comment on whether or not these violations were punished and the mistakes rectified.

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The building, which was being built to be a high-end apartment block, will now be the center of an independent investigation launched by the government which will dig into the causes of the building’s unexpected collapse.

Meanwhile, the state’s chief architect was suspended on Tuesday and it was declared that the results of the investigation will be revealed to the public.

With a number of people still missing and expected to be stuck dead or alive under the heap of concrete that lies on the ground, government officials and security forces are frantically at work.