GUIYANG, May 21 -- Five bodies were found in the rubble of a collapsed building in Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province as of Thursday afternoon, local authorities announced.
Eleven others remain missing, authorities added.
The accident happened at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, when the nine-story building housing 114 residents in central Guiyang fell down. A total of 98 were confirmed safe as of Wednesday evening. Another 16 couldn't be reached, but mobile phone signals of 15 of them were detected at the scene.
The first body was found early Thursday morning.
More than 100 rescuers have been combing the debris with sniffer dogs and life detectors since the accident happened. Fourteen trapped people were pulled out from the debris soon after, including two seniors and a four-month baby.
According to Li Shiyong, head of firefighting team, there's still a chance to find survivors in the debris within the first 72 hours.
However the rainy weather might cause landslides and will make the rescue work more difficult, Li added.
Residents of nearby buildings were evacuated after the accident.
Guiyang has been soaked by rain in the past several days. A rain-triggered landslide is believed to have caused the tragedy, said the Guiyang city government.
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