China: 11 die as roof collapses on girl's volleyball team

Eleven radical person died aft the extortion of a schoolhouse gymnasium successful north-east China collapsed portion it was being utilized by a girls' volleyball team, authorities media reports.

Many of the victims are children, eyewitnesses told section media, though this is yet to beryllium officially confirmed.

Anguished parents person thronged a adjacent infirmary seeking updates.

Only 8 of the 19 radical who were wrong the gym successful the concern state of Heilongjiang survived.

Police person detained the bosses astatine a section operation company, according to section media.

They person been accused of dumping perlite, a signifier of volcanic glass, connected the extortion of the gym portion moving connected an adjacent gathering project.

The mineral had soaked up rainfall h2o pursuing dense downpours, which sent the extortion into a illness astatine 15:00 section clip (07:00 GMT).

The manager of the mediate school's girls' volleyball squad was heard calling retired the students' names arsenic rescue teams clawed done the rubble successful Qiqihar city, China National Radio reported.

Parents person criticised schoolhouse officials, saying determination had been a deficiency of due connection connected the rescue effort, which stretched until Monday morning.

"They archer maine my girl is gone but we ne'er got to spot the child. All the children had their faces covered with mud and humor erstwhile they were sent to the hospital. I pleaded, delight fto maine place the child. What if, that wasn't my child?" 1 antheral said successful a video that has been widely-shared connected societal media.

"What person [the authorities] been doing four, five, oregon adjacent six hours aft the children were sent to hospital? ... Doctors are not communicating with america astir however the rescue is going.

"We person aged radical astatine home, we request to [help them] beryllium mentally prepared. There are doctors, constabulary officers and different authorities officials here. But we person not heard thing from you," helium said.

Many users connected societal media successful the state echoed concerns from the begetter successful the video, questioning the attraction of disquieted parents by the constabulary and officials astatine the scene.

"Do radical mean thing to them?" wrote 1 aggravated user.

Others questioned wherefore perlite was contiguous connected the extortion of the gym successful the archetypal place. "The outgo for breaking the instrumentality is excessively debased successful this country, radical don't person immoderate respect for the law, that's the cardinal reason," different idiosyncratic wrote.

Construction accidents are communal successful China and person been blamed connected lax information standards and mediocre enforcement.

In June, an detonation astatine a barbecue edifice successful north-west China killed astatine slightest 31 people. A preliminary probe recovered that a edifice worker was replacing a breached valve connected a liquefied state vessel erstwhile the blast occurred.

In April, a occurrence astatine a Beijing infirmary killed 29 and led immoderate hopeless survivors fly by jumping retired of the windows.