A hotel being used as a coronavirus quarantine centre in China has collapsed, leaving 70 people trapped inside the building.

Around 70 people were trapped after a hotel collapsed in China’s eastern Fujian province on Saturday evening, officials said.

Xinjia Hotel collapsed around 7:30 pm (1130 GMT) and around 23 people had been rescued by 9:00 pm, according to a Quanzhou city government statement.

The 80-room hotel was recently converted to a quarantine facility for people who had recent contact with coronavirus patients, the People’s Daily state newspaper reported.

State news agency Xinhua said rescue efforts were ongoing.

Independent