No fewer than eleven people,10 members of the school’s trophy-winning girl’s volleyball team who were practicing inside, as well as a coach, were killed when the concrete roof of a school gymnasium collapsed in Qiqihar city, North-east China.
The collapse at No. 34 Middle School in Longsha District in Qiqihar, located in the north-east Heilongjiang province, was reported on Sunday, but the last person wasn’t pulled out of the rubble until Monday morning.
Credible News reports that there were 19 people at the gymnasium when the accident occurred, with four managing to escape. However, all 15 people who were known to be inside the building had been accounted for.
Initial investigations revealed that workers had illegally stored perlite rock on the roof of the sports hall.
When it rained, the material became saturated with water and gained weight, which most likely led to the collapse of the roof.
