One dead and others trapped beneath rubble of collapsed hotel in Argentina

Damond Isiaka
2 Min Read


CNN
 — 

A man has died and up to nine other people are missing after a 10-story hotel collapsed in Argentina.

The 10-story Dubrovnik hotel in the city of Villa Gessell, about 230 miles (370 kilometers) from the capital Buenos Aires on the Atlantic coast, collapsed early on Tuesday morning, according to a statement from the municipal authorities.

Firefighters, paramedics and police were working to remove debris in order to reach people who are thought to be buried.

The victim is thought to have been an 80-year-old man who lived in the building next to the collapsed hotel, minister of security of the province of Buenos Aires Javier Alonso said on the TN news channel.

His partner was rescued but authorities are not sure whether the couple’s son was at the site, Alonso added.

The missing include workers from a construction site at the hotel that was apparently operating “clandestinely, without complying with municipal regulations,” according to the statement.

Emergency workers are trying to free up to nine people believed to be trapped in the rubble.

CNN is trying to contact those responsible for the building to obtain more information.

The hotel, which opened in 1986, was undergoing a range of restorations and modifications.

The statement from the municipality said work at the site had already been “detected and halted” back in August after not having the proper permissions to proceed.

This is a developing story, and will be updated.

CNN’s Michael Rios contributed to this report.

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