Rescue workers have uncovered bodies of four out of the 11 initial missing persons from the wreckage of an apartment tower that collapsed in Medellin 11 days ago. The findings comes as the country’s Prosecutor General’s Office has opened an investigation that could result in manslaughter charges for those found responsible.
Since initially uncovering the body of a 22-year-old student in the days following the collapse, rescue workers had worked for over week until Tuesday’s discovery uncovered three more victims, all employees of a industrial construction company.
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The number of casualties was relatively low as cracks in the walls forced the evacuation of tower six of the brand new apartment complex the evening before the collapse.
The evacuation has now affected 103 families, as well as the 24 families first evacuated on Friday from Tower 6. On Sunday, CDO offered over $1,800 for a month’s rent to each of the families affected.
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The country’s Prosecuting General Eduardo Montealegre said last week that a criminal investigation is being opened against the company Lerida CDO to establish responsibility that led to the construction of the structurally unsound 24-story apartment tower, built in Medellin’s upper-class neighborhood of Poblado.
“The Prosecutor’s General Office initiated a criminal investigation for homicide and personal injury,” said Montealegre. “The focus of the investigation centers basically on the constructors who gave the construction order and those who developed the plans.”
Still missing in the wreckage are six construction workers and one security guard.