Investigators probe renovations at collapsed coronavirus hotel in China
- Rescuers comb through the wreckage searching for more than two dozen missing
- Construction work had reportedly been under way on the ground floor of the building
A government team is investigating whether ground-floor renovations caused a multistorey building to collapse in southeastern China on Saturday night, killing at least 10 people.
More than 1,000 firefighters, police officers and medical personnel were sent to the site of the collapsed Xinjia Express Hotel in Quanzhou, Fujian province, to search for more than two dozen people believed to be trapped in the rubble of the building, which had been used as a coronavirus quarantine centre, the Ministry of Emergency Management said on Sunday.
Authorities said eight people in the building managed to escape as it collapsed at about 7.05pm and one other survivor was rescued and did not need medical attention.
Thirty-eight people were pulled alive from the rubble and hospitalised.
The city government said about 80 people, including medical workers and 58 visitors from coronavirus hotspots were staying at the hotel for a mandatory 14-day quarantine and medical observation period.
All 58 visitors had tested negative for the coronavirus, vice-mayor Hong Ziqiang said on Sunday, pledging to punish those responsible for the tragedy.