With rescue & recovery ops concluded, George building collapse site officially a crime scene

CAPE TOWN - The site of a collapsed building in George is now officially a crime scene after it was handed over to police and the labour department for investigations. 

Rescue and recovery operations concluded on Friday, with all 62 workers accounted for. 

Thirty-three deaths have been confirmed since the five-storey apartment block collapsed 11 days ago and 10 people remain hospitalised.

Authorities on Friday revised the number of people believed to have been on site from 81 to 62.

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The George Municipality's Ntobeko Mangqwengqwe explained: "We found that some of the names on the contractor's list were duplicated. Official investigations by SAPS confirmed that some of those on the contractor's list were not at work on the day of the incident. CCTV clearly proved that some of those on the site left before the first responders reached the site and to date they have never reported their whereabouts." 

The Western Cape's police commissioner said that a team of experienced detectives had been assigned to the case.

Once police conclude their investigation, the site will be handed to the labour department for its own probe.