The death toll from the collapse of a 21-storey building in the city of Lagos, Nigeria's economic hub, rose to 20, as more dead bodies have been recovered, with scores of people remaining unaccounted for, an emergency management official said. Ibrahim Farinloye, the Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in the Lagos state, said in an update statement on Tuesday evening that 20 dead bodies had been recovered and nine people had been rescued alive following the collapse of the 21-story building under construction in the Ikoyi area of Lagos city on Monday afternoon.

Rescue operations were still underway and an investigation into the cause of the collapse is ongoing, Farinloye added. Residents living in the area told Xinhua earlier Tuesday that the building had been under construction for more than one year and over 50 people, mostly construction workers, were trapped under the rubble. Earlier on Tuesday, the Governor of the Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, vowed in a statement a thorough investigation into the deadly building collapse, adding the state government is setting up an independent panel to probe the cause of the collapse.