S Korea building collapse: Dozens of students trapped

Dozens of university students in South Korea are reported to be trapped in a building collapse in Gyeongju in the southeast.

At least three people have been killed, an official says.

Fire services told AFP that part of the ceiling of an auditorium collapsed at the resort complex, during an orientation event for first-year students.

It appears to have been caused by heavy snow on the roof, they said.

Local media reports say the collapse happened at around 21:15 local time (12:15 GMT) and that there were around 100 students in the hall. Around half are reported to have escaped.

Rescue workers with heavy equipment are at the scene but heavy snow around the mountain resort is thought to be slowing access.

Several hundred students from a foreign language college in the southern city of Busan were at the resort, according to local news agency Yonhap. Many of them are thought to have been attending a concert in the auditorium when it collapsed.

The area has experienced exceptionally heavy snowfall over the past week.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26231628