Wenzhou building collapse kills five

Rescue workers search for survivors after four homes collapsed in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, on Thursday.[Provided to China Daily]

Five people were killed when four residential buildings collapsed on Thursday morning in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, according to the local government.

An estimated nine people from two families were buried in the accident, which occurred around 8 am, the provincial government said.

The residential buildings, four to five stories tall, were in Dahui village, Wencheng county.

Three hundred rescuers from the city and the county, including police officers, firefighters and medical workers, were carrying out a rescue operation, but had made little progress as of 1 pm.

"The scene is quite chaotic, as if the place had been leveled by an earthquake," a rescuer said by telephone. "We have to work very carefully because the ruined buildings are still attached to standing homes."

Two people were pulled from the rubble at around 3 pm, but both had no vital signs after being sent to hospital.

Another three victims were discovered later.

A 63-year-old survivor, who was buried in the debris, called for help using a cellphone, China Central Television reported.

The rescue is continuing, the local authority said. Investigators have yet to confirm the cause of the collapse.

Xinhua contributed to this story.