Jan 30, 2010
HK building collapses, two killed
teng@thestar.com.my
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Rescue plea: A resident crying for help when the fivestorey residential building collapsed in Hong Kong yesterday. — Reuters
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HONG KONG: Two people were killed when a rundown building collapsed in Hong Kong, while at least four were missing and believed to be trapped in the rubble, reports said.
Rescuers pulled the bodies of a woman and a man from the wreckage hours after the five-storey housing block, built more than 50 years ago, collapsed in the city’s mainland Kowloon area yesterday, broadcaster RTHK reported.
More than 100 firemen deployed to the scene continued their search for the four people believed to be trapped in the ruins.
Chief Executive Donald Tsang, who visited the site of the collapse, said he believed the accident was linked to a lack of proper maintenance.
Au Choi-kai, Director of Buildings, said a repair order had been served on the owners of the block this month. But he added that its condition was not bad enough to order its closure, according to the RTHK.
“I saw bits and pieces of earth and tiles sliding down the wall at the beginning ... a woman was trying to climb out through the window. About 15 seconds later, the building fell like dominoes,” a passer-by told Cable TV.
Cable TV said renovation work was being carried out on the ground floor of the building but that the cause of the collapse remained unclear. — AFP.
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