Six corpses have been recovered, search for more victims
CAIRO, Dec 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Rescue workers using bulldozers continue to clear away debris in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria as they searched for any survivors trapped under the rubble of a three-story apartment building which had collapsed in the Moharam Bek neighborhood on Wednesday.
Ahmed Ibrahim a witness living next door to the collapsed building explained, “The building collapsed suddenly and there were nine people inside, six corpses have been recovered and the other three people have not yet been found.”
The bodies of three men and three women had been recovered so far, an official said.
Mohammed el-Sharif, the city’s governor, said it was an old building constructed in the 1940s and local officials are still unclear about what caused the building to collapse.
He said rescue crews managed to save a child.
Police forces have since blocked off the area to keep curious onlookers and people claiming to want news of their relatives away from the scene.
Mohammed el-Sharif, said in video comments at the scene that initial reports suggested that two families of nine people were inside the building at the time of the collapse.
He said the building was the subject of three demolition orders, which had apparently been ignored.
Residents of an adjacent complex say they had been evacuated from their building as the structure appeared to be damaged as well.
Building collapses are not uncommon in Egypt, where shoddy construction is widespread in shantytowns, poor city neighborhoods and rural areas.
With real estate at a premium in big cities like Alexandria and Cairo, developers seeking bigger profits frequently violate planning permits. Extra floors often are added without proper government permits.
The government has recently launched a crackdown on illegal building across the country, jailing violators and in many cases destroying the buildings. — NNN-AGENCIES
