Society

4 detained over building collapse in NW China

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-06-29 12:39

XI'AN - Four people have been detained over a building collapse that killed seven workers in Northwest China's Shaanxi province on Saturday, the local government said Wednesday.

Among the four detainees was Zhang Shuangquan, a villager from the outer Weiyang district of the provincial capital city of Xi'an.

Zhang hired 12 workers to build an additional floor on top of his privately-owned five-story building, said the city's safety chief Zhang Jianmin.

The seven workers were killed when the structure collapsed at 4:30 pm Saturday.

The safety official said that Zhang's construction project was illegal, as he never received approval for the project from the local government. He added that the building's structure and the materials used to build it were not up to local safety standards.

Police have also detained the project's contractor, He Gouwa, and two other people in connection with the fatal accident.

An initial investigation showed that the house's owner was renovating the building after being told that the building would be demolished. He reportedly wanted to add the extra floor in order to get more compensation from the local government after the building's demolition.