The number of victims of the collapse of buildings in Egypt rose to 18

CAIRO – The number of victims of the collapse of a nine-story building in Cairo has risen to 18 people, Egyptian state media report.

The building collapsed in the Egyptian capital early Saturday. The state-run Al-Ahram newspaper said search and rescue workers found the bodies during the day.

Excavators were able to dig through the debris in the al-Salam settlement on Saturday morning. Police cordoned off the area, keeping curious people and people apparently looking for relatives in the building.

“They brought out in front of me four people who looked like they were almost gone,” said Mohamamed Mostafa, a resident of the settlement.

At least 24 people were injured and taken to hospitals, according to a morning statement from Khalid Abdel-Al, the administrative head of the Cairo province. The list of those killed in his office since Saturday night remained at nine o’clock.

It was not immediately clear what caused the building to collapse. An engineering committee has been formed to examine the structural integrity of the adjacent buildings, Abdel-Al said.

Building collapses are not uncommon in Egypt, where poor construction is prevalent in log cabins, poor urban neighborhoods and rural areas.

With real estate premiums in big cities like Cairo and the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, developers seeking higher profits often violate building permits. Additional floors are often added without proper permits.

The government recently launched an illegal construction operation across the country, imprisoning violators and in many cases destroying buildings.