Part of a residential building has collapsed on Aeschylou Street in Germasogeia, triggering a major emergency response from the Fire Service and EMAK, the specialised urban search and rescue unit. Two people have so far been freed from the rubble, while searches are continuing to establish whether further occupants remain trapped inside. The building housed an unknown number of residents at the time of the collapse.
Three people were taken to hospital by ambulance in the initial response. Fire Service spokesman Andreas Kettis confirmed that the Director of Operations and the Limassol District Commander are both at the scene, and that an operations centre has been activated under the command of the Chief Fire Officer at Fire Service headquarters. The Deputy Commander of Civil Defence and the Commander of the Mobile Disaster Response Unit are also present at the operations centre, and the Chief Fire Officer is in direct contact with the Justice and Public Order Minister.
According to Phileleftheros, emergency crews pulled one body from the rubble. The building was home to foreign nationals of African and Egyptian origin and contained a total of 10 flats, with at least four people living in each, raising serious concerns about the total number of residents at the time of the collapse. A person was extracted from the rubble at around 5.30pm and found to be dead. Witness accounts suggest some residents managed to leave the building in time, while others were away when it came down.
