Rescue workers were rummaging through a buried hotel's remains in eastern China looking for survivors of a disaster that has recorded at least eight fatalities and nine missing persons. Suzhou's workers inspected through the night. According to the city government, they used cranes, rescue dogs, metal cutters, and ladders following the collapse of the building on Monday.
Parts of the CG Kaiyuan Hotel were reduced to rubble on Monday afternoon. The majority of the people inside the structure at the time of the collapse were hotel guests.
Six individuals were rescued from the Siji Kaiyuan hotel rubble. According to the government of the Wujiang district, it fell down on Monday. Officials had previously suggested that 14 people had already been rescued. However, authorities offered the new tally after additional screening and assessment of new information.
23 People Trapped
With the collapse of the famous city's budget hotel, initial reports indicate that at least 23 people were confined in the incident, reported Independent.
Authorities initially stated that one fatality was recorded. Fourteen people were rescued, reported Aljareeza.
Including earthquake rescue teams and 120 vehicles, over 600 people have been marshalled for the rescue operation. Suzhou city is located in Jiangsu province, reported ABC News.
The cause of the incident has yet to be specified.
In 2018, the hotel had its grand opening. According to its listing on the travel website Ctrip, it had 54 guest rooms.
Photographs displayed orange-clad rescuers with helmets rummaging through the building's ruins. The structure had been reduced to rubble and girders.
Six individuals were rescued. According to officials, 18 people trapped were identified through check-in records. They turned out to be hotel guests. The other five people's identities remain unknown.
It was reported that the Ministry of Emergency Management sent a team to coordinate with the rescue work.
The reason behind the collapse is under probing, according to a state-run Xinhua news agency. Photographs of rescue workers published by Chinese media showed them combing through rubble in the hunt for survivors.
The city is known for its traditional Chinese gardens and historic canals. They are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage sites.
A drone footage from RT's video agency Ruttle displays a gaping hole between other three- to five-story buildings in proximity. In the middle of the rubble, it appears like a glass roof where excavators are working. Earthquake rescue teams were also involved in the effort, including search dogs.
Suzhou comprises of over 12 million people that is estimated to be 100 kilometres (60 miles) west of Shanghai.
Structure accidents or collapses are not uncommon in China. They are usually blamed on corruption or inefficient construction standards.
According to a resident, the structure was about 30 years old. It has already been owned by many people. Before the collapse, there had been construction work taking place at the hotel.
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