A multilevel underground parking garage collapsed at a Tel Aviv construction site today, killing at least two people and injuring some 17 others, according to police and rescue workers.
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Paramedics were called to the scene on Monday morning. Police official Moshe Edri said five people were believed to be still trapped.
Hundreds of members of a special Israeli army unit were scouring the site for the three people who were still missing, local media reported.
The Israeli military has dispatched search and rescue forces to assist the emergency services.
The incident occurred at a construction site in Ramat Hahayal, a commercial area in northern Tel Aviv.
“As we were treating the first victims an avalanche of rubble came pouring down”, said the volunteer, indicating that there was a danger that the rest of the building could collapse. The garage collapsed during a lunch hour, when some construction workers were eating outside.
The structure was still under construction at the time of the collapse.
The auto park was constructed by Africa-Israel, a construction company based in Israel that won a tender to build to the site from the Tel Aviv municipality.
The cause of the collapse is yet to be known.
Moshe Levi, a United Hatzala rescue worker, said he found “a lot of wounded people” when he arrived at the scene.
The Israel-based Africa Israel firm won the tender for the project, the Tel Aviv mayor’s office said.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the site late Monday night, eschewing the Federation Internationale de Football Association 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between Israel and Italy being held in Jerusalem.
