At least eight people were killed and two others were injured when a mosque under construction in Abidjan partially collapsed, as reported by the Military Fire Brigade (GSPM) of Côte d’Ivoire.

The lives of the two injured are not in danger.

But the tally is provisional because the search is ongoing, GSPM rescue chief Alban Konan said. By the afternoon, the investigation had been completed in 70% of the wreckage.

The mosque is located in the center of Abidjan, in the Kokodi district.

The Ministry of Construction and Spatial Planning has not yet announced whether its construction was legal.

In the last three months, three buildings have collapsed in the same community, according to Alban Conan. Last year at least 19 people were killed by the collapse of haphazard, unfinished buildings in the country’s financial capital.

Abidjan, a booming metropolis of 6 million people, has also seen increasing construction activity in recent years, but buildings are often built without permits.

(File Photo)