Nine people were confirmed dead Sunday as a result of cave-in accidents at two construction sites in this capital of the northeastern province of Heilongjiang Saturday.

The accidents, which occurred almost simultaneously around 19:30 Saturday, also injured 13 people and trapping more.

Quite a few builders were working in the subbasement of Renhe Century Square project when an accident occurred, killing three people and injuring eight.

Witnesses heard a rolling sound before the ground with an area of some 50 square meters suddenly caved in and saw some passers-by falling into the sunken area.

The exact number of people trapped underground and causes for the accident are still under investigation.

The other accident in Harbin Engineering University killed one person and injured five.

Officials from the Heilongjiang Provincial Government and Harbin City Government are coordinating rescue efforts at the accident sites.

(Sources from Xinhua News Agency and China Youth Daily August 18, 2003)