Seoul,   At least nine people were killed and eight others injured after a building collapsed in southwest South Korea, officials said.

The five-storery building under demolition unexpectedly collapsed on Wednesday afternoon at the southwestern city of Gwangju, and it was reported to the firefighting authorities at about 4:22 pm (local time).

A bus, which stopped at a station near the construction site, was buried with debris, killing nine people and leaving eight others wounded who were taken to a nearly hospital, Xinhua reported.

Rescuers saved 17 people, mostly those from the buried bus, and were searching for any trapped pedestrian or construction worker.

The police and the firefighting authorities were investigating the exact cause of the mishap.