At least four people have been killed and as many as 21 injured when a two-storey building crumbled on an island in Spain.
Seven of them are thought to be in ‘very serious’ condition after being crushed under falling rubble at the beach resort in Majorca.
Up to 10 people are understood to be still trapped under the slabs of concrete.
Police and firefighters have arrived at the scene of the collapse, and search and rescue operations are ongoing to find survivors.
The death toll is expected to increase in the hours to come as emergency services comb through the wreckage.
‘Now we ask you for silence because we need silence to see if we hear someone,’ a spokesperson for the local police told radio station RNE, adding that he could not rule out that someone was still trapped.
‘The terrace has come down, probably due to excessive weight,’ he added.
The building has been identified locally as a bar in the Playa de Palma sea stretch called the Medusa Beach Club.
The establishment, located on the ground floor, collapsed to the basement, but the cause is yet to be determined. It is being reported a false ceiling went down.
It was initially reported that two people were confirmed dead, but the number of fatalities has gone up in the last hour.
An update from police said: ‘Update information building collapse Cartago street Platja de Palma: 4 people dead and 21 injured. Bodies remain at the site.’.
A source close to the ongoing investigation stressed that the victims are certainly going to include tourists.
‘We are talking about a place which is right on the beachfront,’ they added.
Live footage from the scene shows a number of ambulances and fire engines, with one of them fitted with a cherry picker.
The street outside the beach club has been sealed off so that emergency services can deal with the ongoing incident.
A spokesperson for a regional emergency response coordination centre said: ‘We have activated an emergency response as a result of the collapse of the ceiling of a two-storey building in Avenida Cartago in Playa de Palma, where people are trapped.
‘Firefighters and local police are at the scene.’
Prime minister Pedro Sanchez said on X that he is closely following the ‘terrible collapse’ on the beach of Palma.
He said he had spoken to local and regional authorities, adding the government is ready to help ‘with all the means and troops that are necessary.’
‘I want to send my condolences to the families of the deceased and my wish for a speedy recovery to the injured,’ the politician said.
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