1 dead, 3 hurt in Romanian boarding school's partial collapse

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A boarding school building partially collapsed in central Romania on Monday, leaving one person dead and three injured, authorities said.

Emergency workers raced to find the four people under the rubble in the town of Odorheiu Secuiesc in Harghita county, according to the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations. The affected area was about 239 square yards.

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Authorities said the four trapped by the collapse were brought out but one did not survive. "The fourth victim did not respond to resuscitation efforts," they said.

There was no indication as to what caused the collapse.

Firefighters look for survivors in a collapsed section of a boarding school in Odorheiul Secuiesc, Romania, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (Romanian Emergency Services - ISU Harghita via AP)

Photos of the scene shared by emergency authorities showed a collapsed portion of an old building’s facade. Wooden beams and pillars were strewn amid rubble of bricks and mortar.

After the incident, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis offered his condolences to the family of the deceased and said the tragedy was "a stark reminder that school safety remains a critical priority."

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"The places where children spend most of their time must provide protection and be brought up to current safety standards," he said in a post on Facebook. Iohannis urged for the cause of the collapse to be urgently determined and that those found responsible be punished.