BEIJING: As many as 9 people are dead, and 2 remain stranded after the roof of a school gym collapsed in China, official media reported on Monday.
Nine dead after gym roof collapse in China
The gym in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang Province collapsed before 0700 GMT on Sunday, Xinhua reported.
It added, “13 people had been pulled from the debris while six died after medical treatment failed”.
Footage aired by CCTV showed the entire roof collapsed onto the gym and rescue officials picking through the wreckage.
Read Also: Indian Actress Gets Married to Gym Trainer
CCTV reported that “A search and rescue operation involving about 160 firefighters and 39 fire trucks has been started,”.
An initial probe report into the incident found that construction workers had placed perlite on the gym roof, Xinhua reported. However, heavy rain then led the materials to expand, causing the collapse, it maintained. The official news agency reported that the in charge of the construction firm has been arrested by the police.
One of the worst such accidents occurred in 2015 in Tianjin province, where a gigantic blast at a chemical warehouse killed as many as 165 people.
