Five-storey apartment block collapses in Aragon

A five-storey building has been completely razed to the ground today in the city of Teruel in the south of Aragon.

On Tuesday morning, June 13, a building completely collapsed to the ground shortly after it, and neighbouring buildings, had been evacuated, writes Diario de Teruel.

The building was located on Calle de San Francisco, and according to information from the Fire Department of the Teruel Provincial Council (DPT), the building had five floors with 21 flats and has been left completely demolished.

Emergency services were alerted when a neighbour detected a crack. In addition, others heard creaking noises in the structure. Firefighters together with members of the local and national police evacuated the residents of the building and two adjoining buildings.

It appears that preparations were being made to shore up the building when it suddenly collapsed. Thankfully no injuries have been reported, and it is believed that there are no people trapped within the rubble.

Local authorities have confirmed that the incident will be fully investigated while displaced residents will be transferred to the Santa Emerenciana Day Centre to be fed and then provisionally re-housed.

Teruel has been subjected to heavy rains over the last few days, with a yellow weather alert issued for today.

Neighbours and those affected have announced that at 8 pm today they will gather outside the Town Hall to complain about the ‘lack of attention,’ after it emerged that they have been complaining for more than 15 days about leaks inside the garages.

Eyewitnesses have posted footage on social media which shows the dramatic moment when parts of the building’s outside rendering can be seen breaking away and falling to the ground, before the whole structure crumbles in a cloud of dust with onlookers running for safety.