Turkey building collapse kills two and traps three others under rubble

Firefighters and rescue teams search for trapped people after a residential building collapsed in Gebze, Turkey (Cihan Atik/IHA via AP)

A seven-storey apartment building in Turkey’s north-western city of Gebze has collapsed, killing two people and trapping three others under the rubble, officials and state media said.

Gebze governor Ilhami Aktas said earlier that all five belonged to one family.

State-run TRT news channel identified them as a man, 43, a woman, 37, and their three children.

Rescuers recovered the body of 12-year-old Muhammed Emir Bilir, but the other body was not immediately identified, according to TRT.

While state-run Anadolu Agency stated the cause of the collapse was currently unknown, mayor of Gebze Zinnur Buyukgoz, speaking to local media, suggested it might be related to nearby metro construction.

Gebze also lies along the north Anatolian fault line and was one of the main centres hit during 1999’s magnitude 7.6 earthquake, which killed an estimated 18,000 people in total.

Experts have long warned that Turkey’s failure to enforce modern construction codes poses significant risks in earthquake-prone areas.

In January, the collapse of a four-storey building in Konya led to two deaths.

Shopkeepers who rented the ground floor are currently on trial to determine whether they dismantled supporting columns for more space, a common practice despite severe penalties.

They could face up to 22 years in prison if convicted.