Running against time: Firefighters transporting equipment during the rescue operation at the roof collapse site in Qiqihar. — Reuters
The concrete roof of a school gymnasium collapsed in China’s Qiqihar city, killing 11 people, many believed to be young female volleyball players, with authorities saying the illegal stacking of materials on the roof may have caused the cave-in.
Initially, 15 people were trapped underneath the rubble and state media learned that authorities had pulled out the last remaining person, a student, who had no vital signs.
The collapse at the No. 34 Middle School in Longsha District in Qiqihar, located in northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, was reported at 2.56pm (local time) on Sunday, according to the provincial fire and rescue department, Xinhua said.
A female volleyball team was training in the gymnasium when the incident happened, a father told China Youth Daily as he waited anxiously at the local hospital for news of his 16-year old daughter.
“The team consisted of students selected from different grades. They had just returned to the school a few days ago after a competition out of town,” an eye witness told state radio.
It was not immediately clear if any victims included adults, but state radio reported on Sunday that the coach of the team was buried underneath the rubble.
A family member told reporters at a state-backed media outlet that his niece was a member of the school’s female volleyball team and was training at the gym at the time of the incident.
There were 19 people at the gymnasium when the accident occurred, with four managing to escape, said authorities.
In a video that went viral on social media, an angry father complained that the government sent police to keep a watch on parents but did not send anyone to update about their children.
A preliminary investigation found that construction workers illegally placed perlite, a mineral with high water content and which can absorb water, on the roof of the gymnasium during construction of a teaching building adjacent to the gymnasium, Xinhua reported. — Reuters
