A roof collapsed at the construction site of a South African shopping mall, killing one person while about 50 are feared trapped in the incident which occured at about 16:30 local time (14:30 GMT), in Tongaat, a small town about 40km (25 miles) north of Durban.

According the officials, who disclosed this, rescue teams are working in the dark and using sniffer dogs to look for survivors beneath the rubble at the site in Tongaat, north of Durban.

Officials said those trapped were construction workers, adding that about 30 people had been taken to hospital, some with massive traumatic injuries, paramedics say.

Mr. Powell, a rescue operator is quoted to have remarked that rescue operations are becoming extremely difficult in the dark and that the workers were trapped in a large amount of rubble and scaffolding.

The Deputy mayor of the municipality told South African media that authorities had obtained an injunction a month ago to halt construction at the site.

"There are areas of the law that they [construction firms] did not follow in terms of building," Nomvuzo Shabalala told broadcaster ENCA.

"We were not aware that they were continuing building," she added.

However the cause of the collapse according to one Chris Botha, from the ambulance company Netcare 911, is not deciphered yet while about 100 rescue workers are at the scene, where hydraulic equipment is being used to break through the concrete blocks.