Child killed after building collapses in Lebanon's Tripoli in latest tragedy

A child was killed when a building she was living in collapsed in the impoverished north Lebanon city of Tripoli on Sunday.

Rescue teams rushed to the site of the collapsed three-storey building in the city’s Qobbeh area and managed to pull out a woman who survived.

Her daughter, Joumana Diko, was announced dead after being taken to a local hospital.

Pictures and videos quickly went viral on social media of the tragedy, the latest to hit Lebanon’s poorest city which has suffered decades of government negligence and instability.

معلومات اولية سقوط ضحيتين امرآة وابنتها قضوا في انهيار المبنى في #طرابلس pic.twitter.com/RZ1vbIxAYE

— Jamal Chaiito (@Jamalchaiito1) June 26, 2022

انهيار مبنى قديم العهد في ضهر المغر في #طرابلس. تمكنت فرق الإنقاذ من إخراج السيدة لينا كمود البالغة من العمر ٣٧ عاماً، فيما يستمر البحث عن ابنتها جمانة البالغة ٤ سنوات.
يتألف المبنى من ٤ طبقات، ويؤكد الجيران أن عائلتان تسكنانه فقط. pic.twitter.com/zt4aTm4du6

— Legal Agenda (@Legal_Agenda) June 26, 2022

The Tripoli municipality on Monday gave the green light to tear down buildings at risk of collapsing, according to local media, due to fears that a neighbouring building was also in danger of crumbling.

Authorities on Sunday had warned inhabitants of the poverty-stricken neighbourhood to leave surrounding apartment buildings in risk of falling.

Similar incidents have taken place in recent years where roofs or balconies have collapsed in the city which have led to casualties. Many of the Tripoli’s buildings are very old and have not undergone necessary maintenance to ensure health and safety regulations are met.

An investigation has been opened into Sunday’s incident.

A boat carrying dozens of migrants capsized off the coast of Tripoli in April, triggering an outcry in Lebanon.

Some bodies were retrieved while several others remain at sea.

Lebanon's second-largest city, Tripoli suffers from chronic underdevelopment and neglect from the central government and has one Lebanon's highest rates of unemployment.