South Korea: Busan University building collapse kills three people

At least three people have been killed and dozens of university students are reported to be trapped in a building collapse in Gyeongju, South Korea.

Fire services told AFP that part of the ceiling of an auditorium collapsed at the resort complex, during an orientation event for first-year students.

It appears to have been caused by heavy snow on the roof, they said.

Local media reports say the collapse happened at around 21:15 local time, though there is confusion over the number of students in the hall at the time, with some reports saying 100 and others as many as 450.

Rescue workers with heavy equipment are at the scene but heavy snow around the mountain resort is thought to be slowing access.

Around 1,000 students from Busan University of Foreign Studies were at the resort, said an official. Many managed to get out from the damaged building by themselves, he said, and about 20 have been rescued and taken to hospital.

Yonhap news agency reported the students were attending a concert in the auditorium when the roof fell in.

The area has experienced exceptionally heavy snowfall over the past week.

South Korea was the site of one of the world’s worst peacetime building collapses in June 1995, when Seoul’s Sampoong Department Store collapsed, killing hundreds.