Thirteen people were killed when a residential building collapsed in Beirut and rescue workers were searching on Monday, January 16 for people believed still buried under the rubble, Lebanese officials said.
The five-storey building collapsed in the Ashrafiyeh district of the Lebanese capital on Sunday evening. The victims included Lebanese and Sudanese nationals.
"We are hoping to find people alive. There are still some missing," Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil told LBC television, according to Reuters.
"We have recovered 13 bodies so far and we believe that about 20 victims remain under the rubble," General Raymond Khattar, head of Lebanon's civil defense said.
Khattar said the building housed some 50 people, including many laborers from Sudan and Egypt. He said at least eight were known to have escaped as the building came down.
President Michel Sleiman rushed to the site Sunday evening as did Interior Minister Marwan Charbel and other officials.
Charbel told reporters the building's owner was detained for questioning. He added it was essential to carry out a survey of similar buildings throughout the country, many of which were built illegally or had several storeys added without proper permits, AFP reported.
