Around 10 college students have been killed after a roof at a South Korean mountain resort in the southern city of Gyeongju collapsed Monday. South Korea's National Emergency Management Association said that more than 100 students sustained injuries in the incident.
"Ten people are confirmed dead, two were seriously injured and 101 others suffered bruises and cuts," a spokesman for the Ministry of Security and Public Administration said, BBC reports.
More than 560 first-year college students of the Busan University of Foreign Affairs were attending a freshmen welcoming party in the auditorium at the Mauna Ocean mountain resort. A concert was ongoing when the roof crumbled at 9:11 p.m. Monday.
The collapsed roof trapped dozens of students in snow and debris for several hours. Fire department officials said that heavy snow accumulated on the roof of the prefabricated building, which caused the roof to fall down.
"We assume that the centre of the building was unable to withstand the weight of the snow, so it collapsed," firefighter Kim In-yoo said.
Many students managed to get out of the smashed building by themselves.
"The ceiling came crashing down at the front near the stage," one student said. "Then pandemonium broke out and everyone started rushing towards the exits, shouting and screaming."
South Korean President Park Geun-hye has expressed her "deep condolences" to the victims' families. "It is heart-rending that so many lives were sacrificed." She has called for a detailed investigation to determine the cause of the collapse, CNN reports.