Officials in Christchurch, New Zealand say 90 people from a language school there are missing or feared dead, two days after the earthquake that destroyed the building housing the school.
The King's Education college, which teaches English to students from across Asia, published a list Thursday with the status of all its students and staff.
The school does not identify the missing students by nationality — but most of the names appear to be Japanese, Chinese, South Korean or Thai. At least nine staff members are also missing.
Many of those on the list were thought to be inside the six-story building when it collapsed. Authorities say there is no hope that anyone under the rubble could still be alive.
A New Zealand website — Stuff.com – said one young Chinese woman managed to send a text to her family in Guangzhou saying she was trapped in the building. She has not been heard from since.
The building also housed the offices of Canterbury Television, some of whose employees are also feared dead.
Stuff.com quotes visiting Chinese journalist George Yang of Phoenix TV as saying 35 Chinese students were enrolled at the language school, and that 16 are known to have been in the building when it collapsed.
The site also said 27 Japanese students were known to have been in the building at the time of the quake.