CAIRO, Egypt - A burning 12-story building collapsed in a Cairo suburb last night, trapping up to 18 people inside and injuring 33, police said.
All but two of the trapped were firefighters, and policemen dispatched to put out the blaze, the officials said on condition of anonymity.
The 33 people hospitalized included both police and residents. There was no immediate word if anyone had died.
The officials first said the fire broke out at an Egyptian fast-food restaurant on the ground floor, but later reported it began at an adjacent home appliances store. Most tenants on the upper floors got out before the building collapsed about three hours after the fire started.
The Middle East News Agency quoted Cairo security chief Nabil el-Ezzabi as saying eight people, including three policemen, remained trapped about three hours after the collapse.
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