Under Repair 22-Storey High Luxury Building in Colombia Collapses, 11 Missing

A luxury building currently undergoing repairs in Medellin, Colombia collapsed on Saturday. Search and rescue teams are trying to find at least 11 missing people from under the wreckage.

"We cannot lose hope of finding them alive,'' Jaime Enrique Gomez, acting director of Medellin's disaster preparedness agency, told AP.

Medellin is the capital of the northwestern Colombian province of Antioquia.

It is believed that most of the missing persons were workers tasked to conduct repairs on the 22-storey high luxury apartment Space Building, which on Friday had been evacuated after cracks were found in its structure. The building that specifically collapsed was Tower 6 at 8:20 pm on Saturday.

Despite the tragedy, authorities heaved a sigh of relief because the fatalities could have been worse if not for the evacuation the day earlier. At least 24 families had evacuated from the building on Friday.

Completed early this year, the Space apartments reportedly cost between $100,000 and $265,000.

Authorities mobilised 150 people who worked on Sunday to find the missing persons. Sniffer dogs have likewise been put in place.

Residents living in the other towers told local media the collapse sounded like exploding bombs. They now fear for their safety because the collapse might have a ripple effect on the other towers.

Nine of the missing were workers affiliated with construction company CDO Constructora which were earlier sent to assess and repair the structural damage. The other two were a watchman and a resident.

Video Source: Youtube/ CBC NEWS