Two die after 8-tonne floor slab collapses onto workers at a building being refurbished in Madrid
Forty firefighters are working to reach the deceased, but the structure is very unstable so their recovery is complicated and could take several hours
Two workers have died following the collapse of a floor slab of a building in Madrid, which was being refurbished. The mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, who has travelled to the area, confirmed the death of the two workers.
The partially collapsed building is located on Calle Lezama, on its junction with Calle Llodio, in the Madrid district of Fuencarral-El Pardo, in the north of the Spanish capital, very close to Avenida Cardenal Herrera Oria.
So far, one person has been rescued and taken to La Paz hospital with a broken leg and multiple contusions. Although his condition is serious, there are no fears for his life.
According to Emergencias Madrid, some 40 members of the Madrid city fire brigade are working in the area to reach the two deceased people, but the building is very unstable, so the rescue and «consolidation» of the structure is very complicated and could take hours.
The collapse of the building happened at around 11.15am, during work to convert this office complex into a residential building. The collapsed floor slab which fell on the dead workers weighed «more than eight tonnes», according to the fire brigade.
