Child among two dead in building collapse in Rio de Janeiro

(Update 2: adds details on casualties)

Rio de Janeiro, Jun 3 (EFE).- A young girl and her father were killed and four other people were injured Thursday when a four-story residential building collapsed in Rio de Janeiro for unknown reasons, officials said.

Six teams of firefighters and ambulances were deployed to the western suburban neighborhood of Rio das Pedras, and have been working on the search and rescue work since early this morning.

A fire department officer, Colonel Leandro Monteiro, told reporters that one of the fatalities is a girl between 2 and 3 years old.

Her father also died, Monteiro said, while among the injured is the mother of the deceased girl, who was rescued after being trapped under the rubble for about six hours.

Three other people were pulled alive from the rubble and all the injured were taken to two hospitals, although two of them were released hours later without serious injuries.

Firefighters were still working to locate and free are at least two more victims inside the collapsed building.

“It’s a job of a lot of calm, a lot of patience. Our dogs are helping a lot. We are dealing with information at every moment,” Colonel Leandro Monteiro said.

Witnesses heard loud noises at around 2.00 local time (5.00 GMT) and the building collapsed about an hour and 20 minutes later.

A fire at the building has also been brought under control by firefighters.