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Ten people, including three children, were rescued after the lower floors of a seven-story building collapsed in Istanbul’s Maltepe district early Thursday. One person’s body was recovered from the rubble as rescue teams continued searching for three others.
The building on Dogu Street in the Cevizli neighborhood partially collapsed for an unknown reason, bringing down its first three floors. Authorities received the report at around 5:40 a.m. local time (GMT+3) and quickly sent emergency crews to the area.
Rescue teams evacuated people trapped on the upper floors that remained standing, while crews moved into the collapsed section to search for those under the rubble.
Using search dogs, rescue teams pulled four people, including two children, alive from the rubble and handed them over to medical crews, who took them to nearby hospitals. The textile workshop on the building’s ground floor was found to be empty.
As the remaining floors faced the risk of collapse, rescue teams entered the building in a controlled manner. Roads leading to the street were closed to traffic as a precaution, while a wide security perimeter was set up to allow crews to work.
Several pieces of heavy machinery were also sent from nearby municipalities to support the rescue operation.
Istanbul Governor Davut Gul said none of the people rescued from the building were in life-threatening condition. Gul said the number of people believed to be trapped under the rubble could change, depending on whether anyone had entered the building as a visitor or whether anyone inside had left before the collapse.
He said authorities would also examine whether there were any irregularities in the building’s licensing and permitting process, both administratively and judicially.
"Our priority is to carry out the search and rescue operations safely and as quickly as possible, accommodate the residents we have evacuated and ensure that those who were injured receive treatment," Gul said.
Gul added that authorities had evacuated other buildings deemed at risk around the collapsed structure and were working to stabilize the area. Authorities also launched an investigation into the cause of the collapse.
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