10 people killed in eastern China building collapse

BEIJING: At least 10 people were killed in the collapse of a group of decrepit homes Monday in eastern China, state media reported.

By Monday evening, 15 people had pulled from the rubble on the outskirts of the city of Wenzhou and rescue efforts were continuing, mainly by hand to avoid harming any survivors, the Xinhua News Agency said.

The cause of the collapses was under investigation, although the reports said the four buildings were built in the 1970s by their farmer owners and were in a highly degraded state. Extra floors had also been added over the years, making them between three and five stories high and further weakening their structures.

Poor construction quality has long been a problem in China, particularly in the countryside and smaller cities.