The catastrophic collapse happened around 9 a.m. local time in an industrial suburb of the Bangladesh capital city of Dhaka (map). Ranza Plaza housed four garment factories, as well as some shops and a bank. (See Bangladesh pictures.)

More than 150 people are confirmed dead, and more than a thousand injured. Many are still trapped in the rubble, buried beneath broken concrete slabs and twisted steel rods.

Scenes from the disaster show rescue workers and volunteers digging through the rubble by hand and clinging to makeshift ropes made from knotted, colorful strips of fabric as they search for survivors.

Officials have blamed the collapse on shoddy construction methods. The upper four floors of the plaza, for example, were reportedly