This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/west_midlands/7434940.stm

The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 5 Version 6
Man killed as building collapses Man killed as building collapses
(about 1 hour later)
A man has died as a block of flats collapsed in the Black Country.A man has died as a block of flats collapsed in the Black Country.
The incident, above an estate agents, happened in High Street, West Bromwich, shortly after midnight.The incident, above an estate agents, happened in High Street, West Bromwich, shortly after midnight.
Police said it would take hours to retrieve the body of the man, believed to be in his 30s, as the building was in danger of further collapse.Police said it would take hours to retrieve the body of the man, believed to be in his 30s, as the building was in danger of further collapse.
Two men were rescued and were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Two others made their own way out of the three-storey building.Two men were rescued and were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Two others made their own way out of the three-storey building.
West Midlands Police said the weight of the collapsed roof caused the floors below to give way.West Midlands Police said the weight of the collapsed roof caused the floors below to give way.
Det Ch Insp Danny Long said officers believed they knew who the man was and had contacted his family. Det Ch Insp Danny Long said officers believed they knew who the man was and had contacted his family. I heard a loud bang and then there was like a rumbling which seemed to go on for ages Russ Basford, eyewitness
He said paramedics declared the trapped man dead several hours after the building collapsed. The roof has collapsed inwards, which has caused the floors below to pancake downwards towards the ground floor Fire service spokesman He said paramedics declared the trapped man dead several hours after the building collapsed.
Det Ch Insp Long added it was too early to say if the man had died as the building collapsed or after being trapped in the rubble.Det Ch Insp Long added it was too early to say if the man had died as the building collapsed or after being trapped in the rubble.
He said: "At the moment we can't tell what time this person died or where he was in the building when the roof collapsed.
"Obviously the roof went through not just the first floor but through to the ground floor.
"We don't know how far he fell. We can't say at this stage."
The property is a terraced building, with a Bairstow Eves estate agent on the ground floor and residential addresses on two floors above.The property is a terraced building, with a Bairstow Eves estate agent on the ground floor and residential addresses on two floors above.
Rescue crews with sniffer dogs had been searching through the night to try to find the man, who was believed to have been trapped under the rubble. All neighbouring properties were evacuated and all shops in the street closed.
'Really bad'
Russ Basford, 32, who lives three doors away from the scene, said: "I heard a loud bang and then there was like a rumbling which seemed to go on for ages.
"We had an earthquake around here a few years back so I thought we were having another one. Everything was shaking."
Mr Basford said he went outside to see what had happened and saw a man kicking at the estate agent's metal shutters from the inside.
He said: "Me and another guy went round the back to try and get in. There was no way we could lift the shutters.
"The man was shouting that he was trapped under something.
"The guy I was with got in through a back window and saw the man who was trapped but he said he couldn't get him.
"When he came out he said it was really bad inside."
'Precariously balanced''Precariously balanced'
Rescue crews with sniffer dogs had been searching through the night to try to find the man, who was believed to have been trapped under the rubble.
A fire service spokesman described the incident as a "catastrophic failure" of the roof, adding: "The roof has collapsed inwards, which has caused the floors below to pancake downwards towards the ground floor."A fire service spokesman described the incident as a "catastrophic failure" of the roof, adding: "The roof has collapsed inwards, which has caused the floors below to pancake downwards towards the ground floor."
Tony Prosser, area commander for West Midlands Fire Service, said firefighters were being hampered by the precarious state of the building.Tony Prosser, area commander for West Midlands Fire Service, said firefighters were being hampered by the precarious state of the building.
He said: "The problem we have is that half of the roof of the building is still precariously balanced on top of the gable end wall."He said: "The problem we have is that half of the roof of the building is still precariously balanced on top of the gable end wall."
The cause of the collapse is unknown and police said it was too early to say if there were suspicious circumstances.The cause of the collapse is unknown and police said it was too early to say if there were suspicious circumstances.
The Carter's Green end of High Street is expected to be closed for much of Wednesday.The Carter's Green end of High Street is expected to be closed for much of Wednesday.