12-story residential building in Egypt collapses, killing five

Five Egyptians were killed on Monday when a 12-storey residential building collapsed in Egypt's Mediterranean city of Alexandria, a security source said.

Rescue workers pulled the five bodies from the rubble, but
authorities expect the death toll to rise as more are
uncovered, according to security sources.

State news agency MENA said rescue workers had managed to
unearth one survivor, a woman, from the ruins.

MENA cited Alexandria Governor Adel Labib at the scene of
the collapse in eastern Alexandria as saying an operations room
had been set up to coordinate rescue efforts, and local
hospitals had been alerted to prepare for any more injured.

Labib said construction workers had been doing repairs on
the first floor when the building suddenly tilted and
collapsed, MENA said.

Streets leading to the site of the collapse had been sealed
off, and the area had been cordoned off to pedestrian traffic
as well, according to MENA.

The buildings on either side of the collapse had suffered
structural damage and had been evacuated.

One security source said the building was home to at least
18 families, but that authorities still had no clear idea of
the number of people who had actually been inside the building
when it collapsed.

Building collapses are a frequent hazard in many parts of
Egypt because of lax building standards and poor maintenance.