Two men lost their lives while three people suffered injuries after the row houses that were scheduled to be demolished in downtown Shanghai collapsed early Sunday morning, authorities confirmed.

The fatal accident occurred before 5am on Sunday (China time), when a total of nine people were reportedly inside the soon-to-be demolished establishment on Xingang Road located in Hongkou District.

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Four individuals had a chance to escape while five people were pulled out safely from the collapsed houses by the rescuers.

Out of the five who were pulled out in the area, two men were declared dead by the medical staff. The other three incurred different injuries and were transferred to the nearby Xinhua Hospital.

The debris found in the collapsed building, which was made up of bricks and wood, include several  pairs of shoes, a TV set, a refrigerator, as well as several pieces of clothing.

According to the statement by the local authorities, the collapsed establishment includes one three-story house as well as three single-story dwellings, which were allegedly built illegally.

The victims of accident were mostly residents living in the collapsed building. Among the victims were an aged Shanghainese couple, who were living in the three-storey house, as well as the migrants who are renting the smaller houses. 

One of the neighbors mentioned that a loud bang woke them up in the early hours of the morning. They initially thought that there was a quake. When they hurriedly went out, they saw that the houses had already collapsed and that there were thick clouds of dust coming out of the rubble.

 The fatalities in the accident include the 71 year old man named Lu, as well as the migrant who worked as a sugarcane vendor. A 22 year old man named Feng Chaobing was seriously injured, while three individuals suffered from minor bruises.

Song Fudi, the wife of Lu, and a family of three managed to escape the accident.