Rescuers pulled 22 bodies from a nine-storey garment factory that collapsed near Bangladesh's capital Dhaka today and hundreds of people are feared trapped in the rubble.
The rescuers armed with searchlights and cutting gear pulled 82 people alive from the debris but their efforts were hampered by narrow roads, swamps and paddy fields surrounding the site and by a stream of mourners, officials and witnesses said.
"The battle is on and being intensified," said a rescue official. "Hundreds of mourners are still crowding the site of the collapsed building and refusing to go away," he said.
The army brought in sniffer dogs and heavy equipment including excavators and cranes to speed up an effort that went on into the night.
The building collapsed at about 7 p.m. Irish time during the night shift at Shahriar Fabrics at Palashbari, 30 km from Dhaka.
"In a few minutes the entire structure crumbled like a house of cards," a witness told a private television channel.
A massive pile of bricks and concrete slabs was all that remained of the building. Rescuers and relatives stood helplessly on top, some calling for loved ones.
Army medical units supplied bottled water and medicine to trapped survivors after cutting holes in the building's roof.
"We will work through the night and expect to complete the rescue operation by tomorrow," one rescue official said. "We suspect up to 500 people are under the debris. It was a packed night shift running ... and dozens may have died already," a survivor told reporters on the scene.
Security officer Abdul Hye said at least 250 people had been working the night shift.
Some of those trapped on the upper two floors might still be alive but there was no chance of survival for those under the rubble of the lower floors, rescuers said.
Anxious residents used mobile phones to try to contact relatives trapped beneath the rubble. "Until a few minutes ago, my brother Jamal was calling me on my mobile for help. But now he has gone quiet," Ruma Begum said.
"I am still frantically trying to reach him on his mobile ... but there is no response. Only Allah knows what has happened," she told reporters.
Police said the collapse was probably triggered by a boiler explosion. Fire brigade officials said they would investigate.
Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia flew to Palashbari in the afternoon and was visibly shocked by the destruction.
"I want you to mobilise all strength and resources to speed up the rescue efforts and not to let anyone die due to negligence," she said, adding that the government would do all it could to help survivors and families of the dead.
It was not possible to contact the building's owners.