A two-storey building under construction collapsed on Wednesday at Unguwar Rogo along Bauchi Road in Sokoto metropolis, with all 15 construction workers on site escaping unhurt.

According to a statement posted on Facebook by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Sokoto Operations Office, the agency received a distress call at about 2:23 p.m. and immediately deployed its Search and Rescue Team to the scene.

“Assessment at the scene revealed that 15 construction workers were present when the building collapsed. Fortunately, none of the workers was trapped or injured, and no casualty was recorded,” NEMA said.

The agency said its Search and Rescue Team joined other emergency responders in a coordinated operation to search for possible trapped victims, evacuate casualties if necessary, and secure the area against further risks.

The multi-agency response involved the Federal Fire Service, Sokoto State Fire Service, Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Sokoto State Urban Planning and Development Authority, the State Association of Civil Engineers, as well as members of the community.

The spokesperson for the Sokoto State Police Command, DSP Ahmad Rufai, confirmed the incident, saying no lives were lost and no injuries were recorded.

“No life was lost and no injury was recorded in the incident,” Rufai said.

The owner of the building project, Alhaji Auwal Abubakar, described the collapse as unfortunate but expressed relief that everyone escaped unharmed.

“It is a painful incident, but I thank God that no life was lost,” he said.

NEMA added that relevant authorities have commenced investigations to determine the cause of the building collapse.

The Bauchi State Police Command said three suspects had been arrested over the killing of a 51-year-old man, Monday Chiroma, following an attack allegedly linked to accusations of witchcraft in Dandango, while another suspect was arrested over the fatal stabbing of a 25-year-old man in Unguwan Kur, Bauchi.

The command’s spokesman, SP Nafiu Habib, disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday.

According to the statement, Chiroma and another resident, identified as Yelwa Bango, were allegedly attacked by a group of men who accused them of bewitching a 20-year-old woman, Jamila Anthony.

Chiroma later died while receiving treatment at a hospital in Gudun Hausawa, Bauchi.

The police said the attack occurred on July 20 at about 11:30 pm, after which the victims were rushed to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital, Bauchi.

“Monday Chiroma was certified dead, while Yelwa Bango was admitted and treated,” the statement said.

The command identified the arrested suspects as Danjuma Anthony, 25; Ayuba Anthony, 22, also known as Babaru; and Christopher Adamu, 34.

It added that the suspects allegedly confessed to the offence during interrogation, while efforts were under way to arrest other suspects who remain at large.

In a separate incident, police said Al-Amin Hamisu Gidado, 21, was arrested over the stabbing of Zahradeen Dan’Azumi Tanko, 25, in Unguwan Kur on July 25.

The command alleged that Gidado, alongside another suspect identified as Yahaya Mu’azu, who is currently at large, stabbed the victim in the back.

Tanko was taken to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital, Bauchi, where doctors confirmed him dead on arrival.

The police said both cases had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation and prosecution.

The Commissioner of Police, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, condemned the incidents, urging residents to avoid violence and jungle justice and to report suspicious activities to the nearest police station.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Jigawa State Command, has arrested four persons suspected of stealing aluminium roofing sheets from the School of Nursing in Hadejia.

The suspects were apprehended on Tuesday by operatives of the Gandun Sarki Division during a surveillance patrol conducted to protect critical national assets and public infrastructure.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, ASC Badruddeen Tijjani, confirmed the development in a statement issued on Wednesday in Dutse. He said the suspects were arrested behind the school’s perimeter fence during the operation.

According to him, the arrest was made as part of the Corps’ ongoing efforts to secure public facilities and prevent vandalism.

Tijjani disclosed that the suspects were found with 13 square metres of aluminium roofing sheets believed to have been removed from the institution, where renovation work is currently under way.

He identified the suspects as Adamu Mohammed, 31, a security guard employed at the school and a resident of Ramin Zaki Quarters in Hadejia; Dan Inu Mohammed, 35, a carpenter from Gandun Sarki in Malam Madori Local Government Area; Isma’ila Adamu, 30, a tricycle operator from the same community; and Bashari Yahaya, 25, an apprentice, also from Gandun Sarki.

The NSCDC spokesman said preliminary investigations indicated that one of the suspects was among the school’s security personnel, a situation that has highlighted weaknesses in the institution’s internal security arrangements.

He noted that the command had informed the management of the School of Nursing, Hadejia, about the security shortcomings and urged the institution to improve its internal security measures to prevent similar incidents.

The Jigawa State Commandant of the NSCDC, CC Muhammad Ingawa, reiterated the corps’ determination to combat vandalism and safeguard public infrastructure across the state.

He warned individuals involved in vandalism, theft and other forms of economic sabotage to abandon such activities, stressing that the command would continue to strengthen surveillance, intelligence gathering and enforcement operations to ensure offenders are prosecuted.