China: At least 17 people have been killed and five others injured after an annex to a hotel collapsed in the city of Suzhou, in east China's Jiangsu Province, local authorities said on Wednesday. According to reports, the accident took place at around 3:33 p.m. Monday, during which 23 people were trapped. The rescue operation ended at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
The city of Suzhou said on its social media feed that 23 people had been pulled from the rubble of the Siji Kaiyuan Hotel, which collapsed on Monday afternoon. One of those freed was uninjured and five others were sent to a hospital for treatment. The provincial government of Jiangsu has set up a team to investigate the cause of the accident. Meanwhile, the local police have taken criminal coercive measures against the people responsible for the collapse. Preliminary investigations found that the collapse was triggered by an unauthorised renovation, according to the government of Wujiang District, where the hotel is located.
More than 600 people including earthquake rescue teams and 120 vehicles were mobilized for the operation. Suzhou city is in Jiangsu province near Shanghai. Jiangsu’s highest official, Communist Party Secretary, Lou Qinjian, visited with rescuers and victims on Tuesday, the city said.
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