BEIJING — A nine-storey residential building in south-west China collapsed following a landslide today (May 20), trapping at least five people, the city government said.

The collapse occurred at about 11.30am in Guiyang city. Two hours later, the city government said it had checked three-quarters of the 35 households and found at least five of the 114 residents were missing. It was trying to contact a total of 21 residents.

It said in a statement that heavy rainfall led to the collapse and that people in the surrounding area had been evacuated. More than 100 rescuers were at the scene and no casualties had been found by mid-afternoon, it said.

Photos on the website of China Radio International showed a pile of steel, bricks and other rubble surrounded by other buildings. AP