Authorities say at least eight people have died and nine remained missing in a hotel collapse in Suzhou city in eastern China.
The hotel building collapsed Monday afternoon, the Suzhou government said.
Most people in the building at the time were hotel guests.
Rescuers used cranes, ladders, metal cutters and search dogs to look for survivors. Twenty-three people were trapped. Six have been rescued.
More than 600 people including earthquake rescue teams and 120 vehicles have been mobilised for the operation. Suzhou city is in Jiangsu province near Shanghai.
