At least seven people were killed and another 24 were rescued after a commercial offices building under construction collapsed Tuesday in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
According to the city's fire department, quoted by Excelsior newspaper, at the moment they made contact by phone with a person trapped in the rubble, they also estimated 10 people remain in the same condition.
So far, the causes of the collapse in one of the most populated cities in Brazil are unknown. According to the Mexican newspaper, a spokesman of the Sao Paulo State Fire Department of the Military Police stated, "They worked normally; there was no noise, just the sudden collapse".
Meanwhile, the El Observador newspaper revealed that the incident occurred at 8:35 a.m. local time (12:35 GMT) on Tuesday in a San Mateus neighborhood located east of Sao Paulo at a building under construction where the fashion chain Magazine Torra Tor store was to be located. The land in which the building stood had 400 square meters. An investigation began to determine the incident's causes.
According to Nuevo Herald reports, Sao Paulo Fire Department Captain Marcos Palumbo said, "To get people out of the rubble we need a lot of technique and experience. Chances are that the death toll rises. It's a risky situation with difficult access. The rescue teams have had no contact with anyone else under the rubble".
The firefighter's crew remains at the place with at least 60 elements, 23 vehicles and canine squads in order to locate dead or alive victims in the rubble.
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