Rescue teams in Tanzania say they have managed to make contact with people still trapped a day after a four-storey building collapsed in the largest city, Dar es Salaam.
They manage to send water, glucose and oxygen through small holes in the rubble.
Tapping sounds have been heard from the building in the city’s busy Kariakoo market area.
Five people are known to have died, while 77 have been released alive so far.
Large crowds of bystanders applauded as rescue teams moved survivors on stretchers past huge piles of concrete rubble to take them to hospital.
Seven people were rescued from the basement of the building on Sunday, Dar es Salaam regional commissioner Albert Chalamila told The Citizen newspaper.
“We are hopeful that more survivors will be found,” he said.
It is not clear how many people are still in custody.
Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said authorities “will not rest until we have ensured that we have rescued every person or soul trapped in the rubble.”
After the building first gave way around 9 a.m. local time (0600 GMT) on Saturday morning, hundreds of first responders used sledgehammers and their bare hands to pull away the rubble, AFP news agency reported.
Cranes and other heavy machinery were later brought in to help.
Fortunately, the building was demolished before the market became too busy.
Authorities have yet to determine the cause of the collapse, but investigations are expected to begin once rescue efforts are completed.
Dar es Salaam is one of the fastest growing cities in the world and according to reports, building regulations are not always enforced.
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