On Saturday, April 30, the day after a building collapsed in central China, the cause of which is still unknown, dozens of people were stranded or missing. The eight-storey building, which housed a hotel, apartments and a cinema, collapsed in the city of Changsha on Friday afternoon.
At least 23 people were trapped late Saturday while 39 others remained unreachable, Changsha Mayor Zheng Jianxin said. No deaths have been announced at this time. “The situation of the missing persons is being thoroughly examined,” said the mayor.
According to the city administration, five people were rescued by rescuers overnight. On Saturday, rescue workers were still trying to make their way through the rubble. They used circular saws to free several survivors. State media showed firefighters cutting through a tangle of metal and concrete while rescuers shouted to communicate with survivors. Some of the injured were carried on stretchers while sniffer dogs swept the area looking for signs of life.
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Xi Jinping orders full investigation
The authorities have not yet given an explanation for this catastrophe. The state television CCTV nevertheless reported that “tenants had made structural changes to the premises to varying degrees”.
According to state media, Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered a full investigation into the cause of the collapse and called for a search for the victims “at any cost”. A senior Communist Party official was dispatched to the scene, testifying to the gravity of the disaster. Central government-appointed State Councilor Wang Yong has been dispatched to head a team that will “direct rescue and emergency operations,” according to an official statement released on Saturday.
This type of disaster is common in China due to poor compliance with safety regulations and lax services designed to ensure their proper application.
In January, an explosion believed to have been caused by a gas leak hit a building in the city of Chongqing, some 1,700 kilometers west of Shanghai, killing at least 16 people. A gas pipeline explosion in a residential area in June 2021 killed 25 people in Hubei province (central). In the same month, 18 people were killed when a fire broke out at a martial arts school. All victims were boarders.