Naples building collapse: Several believed buried in apartment block rubble

Witnesses say there was no explosion but a train had recently passed by

Emergency workers inspect the rubble of an apartment block in Torre Annunziata, Italy (@emergenzavvf)

A five-storey block of flats has collapsed near Naples in Italy, police have said.

Firefighters said up to eight people may be buried in the rubble in the seaside town of Torre Annunziata, some four kilometers (three miles) from the Pompeii archaeological site.

The news agency ANSA quoted witnesses as saying that there was no explosion before the collapse sometime after 6 a.m., but that a train had just passed by on adjacent train tracks.

Images show the structure partially collapsed, revealing the interior of some apartments. Some 30 rescue workers were removing rubble by hand, passing it out in buckets, as firefighters on long, retractable ladders checked the stability of the section that remained intact.

At one point, the digging was paused while a sniffer dog checked the scene.

News reports indicated that reconstruction work was being carried out on the building before the collapse.

The train line that passes Mount Vesuvius and connects Naples with such tourist sites as Pompeii and the Amalfi coast has been closed.

Additional reporting by agencies