A building has collapsed in Cameroon’s largest city, Douala, killing at least 12 people and injuring five others.
It is unclear how many people were inside the four-story building when it fell on another residential building in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The rubble is searched for survivors.
Neighbors in distress described hearing screams and frantically trying to dig people up.
Teams from Cameroonian firefighters, the Red Cross and other rescue services are still working at the scene.
Regional Governor Samuel Dieudonné Ivaha Diboua sought to reassure people – saying the situation is under control and rescue teams will ensure no one remains under the wreckage.
Three children and ten adults are receiving emergency treatment at nearby Laquintinie hospital, AFP reports.
Staff said a three-year-old girl who had been brought in had died.
It’s unclear what caused the building in Douala’s Ange Raphael neighborhood to collapse, but residents told reporters it looked dilapidated.
Municipal authorities demolished homes deemed to be at risk of flooding or landslides, but this particular block was not slated for demolition.
Building collapses are not uncommon in Cameroon.
In 2016, a dilapidated building in Douala that flouted building regulations collapsed, killing five people.