Cambodian building collapse: PM takes charge of rescue mission
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Sunday said he would take personal charge of the rescue operation underway following the deadly collapse of a building under construction.
Hun Sen was due to travel to the seaside resort town of Sihanoukville, where the accident happened early on Saturday while dozens of workers were sleeping inside.
Some survivors have said there were 70 people at the building when it caved in.
Nineteen bodies have been pulled from the debris. A further 24 were injured in the collapse.
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More than 1,000 emergency workers gathered at the site to keep up the search for survivors in the rubble as night fell on Sunday.
“We fear more bodies are trapped in the debris because the search has not reached the bottom of the building yet,” a provincial official told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
Half the site cleared
Provincial authorities said that, as of Sunday afternoon, half the debris at the site had been cleared.
It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the collapse, but Hun Sen said negligence was to blame.
Authorities said they had detained four Chinese nationals involved in the construction.
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Cambodia’s prime minister wants to lead the rescue operation for any workers trapped in the debris
Poor labor protection
Sihanoukville is a popular resort town that has seen a boom of Chinese-owned casinos and hotels.
Between 2016 and 2018, $1 billion (€880 million) was invested by the Chinese government and private businesses in Preah Sihanouk province, according to official statistics.
Building accidents are common in Cambodia. The Southeast Asian country is notorious for lax safety laws and poor labor protections.
mm/jlw (AP, AFP, dpa)
Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/cambodian-building-collapse-pm-takes-charge-of-rescue-mission/a-49323352?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf