Death toll rises to 5 in Tenerife building collapse

Spanish authorities said Saturday they had pulled more bodies from the rubble of a four-storey building that collapsed on the popular Canary Island resort of Tenerife, bringing the death toll to five.

Two people were still missing, officials said, after Thursday's collapse in the seaside, tourist area of Los Cristianos in the south of Tenerife, near one of the island's most popular beaches.

The victims were three women and two men who have yet to be identified, city hall said in a statement, adding that four adjacent buildings had been evacuated.

"The occupants of the four buildings and the one that was affected have been rehoused in hotels and in a municipal camping ground," it said.

It is unclear why the building collapsed.

Three people, including a 28-year-old Italian man who suffered a broken arm, were rescued from the rubble late Thursday, with two requiring hospital treatment.

Tenerife, the largest of Spain's Canary Islands off the coast of Africa, is a popular destination for British and German holidaymakers and retirees.
Source: AFP