23 dead in military barracks collapse in Russia

A general view of a military barracks with a collapsed wall in Omsk, Russia, July 13, 2015. At least 23 soldiers were killed when a military barracks collapsed in Russia's Omsk region, Russian news agencies said on Monday. [Photo/Agencies]

MOSCOW - The Russian defense ministry says 23 people have died and 19 have been injured when the ceiling of military barracks collapsed in Siberia.

Rescuers search for hours for men trapped under the debris of an airborne troops training center in Omsk where the ceiling collapsed in the early hours of Monday.

The defense ministry said they found the bodies of the 23 missing people under the debris by late morning and called off the search.

Authorities have sent 10 gravely injured men to Moscow for treatment.

The defense ministry would not speculate on the cause of the accident. Ministry spokesman Gen.-Maj. Igor Konashenkov said the building was renovated in 2013 but he insisted that could not have caused the collapse.