Authorities in the Philippines reported that a nine-storey building collapsed in the city of Angeles on Sunday, leaving four dead and 17 missing. Search and rescue efforts are currently under way.
Maria Leah Sajili, an information officer at the Bureau of Fire Protection, told Reuters in a phone interview that one of the victims had a pulse when he was retrieved but later died whereas another suffered a cardiac arrest while being trapped.
Officials were still updating the death toll as crews pulled an unidentified body from the debris.
Authorities said 17 people were considered missing, a majority being construction workers who were sleeping at the site when the incident occurred.
Among the fatalities was a Malaysian tourist trapped in a budget inn. The inn was hit by a stream of debris from the collapsed building. Officials reported that another guest was injured but managed to escape.
At least 26 people were rescued from the site.
“Authorities are still saying the operation is a search and rescue. They will be using thermal detectors to try and find more signs of life, but if they don’t, they’re saying they will start using heavy equipment to clear the debris and retrieve people they believe are trapped under the rubble,” said Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Lo, reporting from Angeles.
According to officials, around 70 people were employed at the construction site, although most had gone home for the weekend.
One of the workers, Alfredo Albis, who was asleep in a barracks for workers about 5 metres away from the building, told AFP, “I have two cousins who are still trapped there. They were working here to earn for their families and are missing. There’s a possibility that my relatives are dead.”
The reason for the collapse has not yet been found.
Angeles Mayor Carmelo Lazatin told the media that authorities were trying to locate the building owner to get more information, including a confirmation on the number of workers at the site.
