Rescuer workers in Argentina were scrambling to reach people trapped under debris after a hotel collapsed, with one person confirmed dead.
The 10-storey Dubrovnik hotel, in the coastal city of Villa Gesell, collapsed early on Tuesday, with a local describing the scene as resembling a “horror movie”.
Up to 15 people are believed to have been inside the hotel, which had recently been undergoing renovation.
Rescue teams were working at the scene attempting to free those thought to be trapped. The body of a man in his 80s was found in the debris, while one woman has so far been rescued.
Local authorities said building work at the hotel had been halted in August on the orders of the municipality, because the renovations were being carried out without the proper permits.
However, neighbours told journalists that work on the building had been continuing in defiance of the suspension order.
Monica Mino, who lives next to the hotel, said the building “transformed into a cloud of dust and we couldn’t see anything”.
“We heard like an earthquake … this was terrible. It’s like a horror movie we’re living,” she told Reuters. —BBC
