About five government vehicles and office buildings at Ndola’s Cabinet Office have been extensively damaged after a DMMU communication tower fell on them last evening.

In a statement today, Copperbelt Province Permanent Secretary Elias Kamanga revealed that the communication tower fell as a result of a heavy downpour which was followed by a hailstorm.

Kamanga stated that some vehicles were damaged beyond repair while a number of shops and other office buildings had their roofs blown off.

“A serious hailstorm that followed a heavy downpour in the evenings of today [yesterday] has caused serious damage in the City of Ndola. A number of government vehicles parked in the Cabinet Office car park have been extensively damaged some of them beyond repair after a Communication tower belonging to the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) collapsed on them. Several shops and Office buildings in the City also had their roofs blown off while many trees along the roads have been uprooted,” stated Kamanga.

“My Office is yet to ascertain the exact extent of the destruction and regrets the damage so far recorded. The damage to the over five vehicles belonging to various Ministries will further compounds the critical transport shortage in the Province.”