At least 30 people were killed and many more are feared dead after an eight-storey building collapsed in the Bangladeshi capital on Wednesday.
With hundreds feared still trapped under the rubble, rescuers frantically searched what was left of the building, which housed a market and a garment factory, just outside Dhaka. It is not yet clear what caused the collapse but local media reports said a crack appeared at the building on Tuesday afternoon, reports BBC.
The army has joined hundreds of workers from the fire department in rescue operations using concrete cutters and cranes to dig through debris in the hope of finding more people.
“Many people are feared dead,” said Major Zehadul Islam, a director of the fire department.
Local police chief M. Asaduzzaman told AFP that the situation was “disastrous and at least 100 people are feared trapped”.
Building collapses are common in Bangladesh, where many developers of multi-storey buildings reportedly disregard safety standards.
In November, a fire at a garment factory in Dhaka killed more than 100 workers in the worst industrial accident the country has seen. The incident triggered public outrage over the lack of safety standards in the industry.
