Girl, 9, Rescued From Morocco Rubble; 47 Die

A 9-year-old girl was pulled alive Friday from the ruins of a shoddily constructed building that collapsed in the Moroccan city of Fez, killing at least 47 people, officials said.

Rescuers retrieved 16 bodies from the wreckage Friday. Forty people were injured when the five-story building that had been home to 87 people collapsed Wednesday.

The girl’s mother and her eight brothers and sisters were killed in the accident. Her father, a night watchman, was not home when the building crumbled.

On Thursday, a mother and a baby cradled in her arms were pulled out alive after being trapped for 36 hours.

Officials in Fez said they were confident that all occupants of the 10-year-old building were accounted for and that no more bodies would be found.

The building had been constructed quickly and cheaply in Ben Debbab--a poor, working-class area outside Fez, 124 miles east of the capital, Rabat, officials said.

Police arrested the building contractor but would not identify him.

In a similar case in January 1998, a hastily built apartment building collapsed in Fez, killing at least 17 people. After deep cracks appeared in the walls of the building, authorities ordered an evacuation, but some residents refused to leave.