S.Africa rescuers set hopes on collapsed building's basement

George, South Africa: Rescuers in South Africa said Thursday there was a glimmer of hope that more survivors could be found in the basement of a colla...

George, South Africa: Rescuers in South Africa said Thursday there was a glimmer of hope that more survivors could be found in the basement of a collapsed building days after it came crashing down, killing eight people.

Dozens of people were still unaccounted for, more than 72 hours after rescue services started combing through the debris in the southern city of George.

"The basement is largely intact... we do think that there could be people alive there," Colin Deiner, head of rescue operations, told SABC national broadcaster.

"We will possibly consider staying in rescue mode for another little while," he added.

City officials have previously said that operations were soon to enter the "body recovering" phase, as chances of surviving drop dramatically after three days.