George building collapse survivor recounts being under concrete slab

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A survivor who was retrieved on Tuesday from the rubble at the site of the building collapse in George in the Western has spoken out about his ordeal for the first time. The electrician and a father of a two-year-old says he is grateful to be alive.

He suffered a fractured rib, pelvic injuries and a head wound. Thirty-nine people remain unaccounted for.

The death tolls stands at 13.

Delvin Safers was rescued after 28 hours.

He is still very emotional and says while he is grateful to be alive, it’s difficult knowing his colleagues are still trapped.

“The first thing I saw was darkness. There was no light and I was looking for light … literally, no light! And I was just laying there for the first quarter of an hour to half an hour, just trying to figure out what had happened. And then I somehow just remembered I had my phone in my bag, in my pocket, grabbed my phone, put on the light just to see what was going on around me. Then I saw on top of me was a big concrete slab and my right arm was trapped and my legs were trapped, but somehow I just removed all the rubble and all those rocks and stuff, just to move my body and stuff. And that’s when I saw some of my colleagues just here, by my feet, were already deceased.”

Meanwhile, the family of Safers say they are overjoyed that he is still alive. He was able to communicate with his family via voice notes.

His father, Dion says he believes it was Delvin’s two-year old son, who kept him going.

“My wife took a photo of his baby boy and she sent it to him. She sent it to him and he believed after that day, that picture was one of the inspirations for the Delvin, to continue to stay calm and to believe that you will get out there alive.”

George Building Collapse | Survivor speaks of ordeal: