Cambodia building collapse kills 36 people, injures 23 others

Thirty-six people were killed and 23 more injured when a tourist guesthouse under construction in Cambodia collapsed, trapping workers under rubble.

Officials said rescue operations ended two days after the seven-storey concrete building collapsed on Friday in the coastal town of Kep, about 160 km southwest of the capital Phnom Penh.

The 36 dead included six children and 14 women. And officials said in a statement that did not detail why children were at the construction site.

Kep Governor Ken Satha said that the owners of the building, a Cambodian couple, had been detained for questioning.

However, Prime Minister Hun Sen defended the government response and said that no officials in Kep province would be fired.

Cambodia is undergoing a construction boom to serve growing crowds of Chinese tourists and investors.