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Istanbul house collapse kills two | |
(about 5 hours later) | |
A five-storey building has collapsed in the Turkish city of Istanbul, killing at least two people and injuring 26 others, the city's governor has said. | |
One seven-year-old girl was believed to be dead when pulled from the rubble, but she was found to be alive and is now in critical condition in hospital. | One seven-year-old girl was believed to be dead when pulled from the rubble, but she was found to be alive and is now in critical condition in hospital. |
Teams using sniffer dogs are searching for others who may be buried in debris. | |
Witnesses said there could have been more deaths had staff at a ground floor coffee shop not sounded the alarm. | |
They and a passer-by, who had noticed the building moving, tried to alert residents by ringing doorbells, shouting and throwing stones at windows. | |
Many residents said they were on the stairs or had just left the building when it began crumbling just after midnight local time (2200 GMT Tuesday). | |
Ali Karahan, chief of Istanbul's fire department, said some of the injured had been rescued after becoming trapped in a stairwell. | |
Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler said at least 27 people were living in the building. | |
Reports say work on a nearby property may have weakened the building's foundations, while the chimney of a bakery once located in the structure's basement may also be responsible. | |
There are also reports that the building was on a list of property scheduled for demolition. | There are also reports that the building was on a list of property scheduled for demolition. |
Poor construction was blamed for much of the damage in two earthquakes which hit the Turkish city in 1999. | Poor construction was blamed for much of the damage in two earthquakes which hit the Turkish city in 1999. |