TEHRAN: At least six people died and dozens were injured or missing under rubble after an unfinished high-rise building collapsed in southwestern Iran, officials said.
Choking white dust swirled from where the tower-block had stood, covering surrounding vehicles, as shocked onlookers stared at the wreckage in horror, some screaming. "Parts of the 10-storey Metropol building, located in Abadan in Khuzestan province, collapsed," state television said. "Six people lost their lives and 27 others were injured in the disaster."
Rescuers clambered over huge slabs of shattered concrete and tangles of twisted metal bars. The Iranian Red Crescent, in an initial report, said that as many as 80 people could be trapped under the rubble, but hours after the collapse, rescuers lowered the missing to "tens" of people.