By Mahmut Atanur

BEIJING

Chinese authorities have confirmed that 18 workers were killed after a temporary structure at a construction site gave way after being struck by a crane, state media reported Thursday.

Another 18 people were hospitalized with four of them in critical condition after strong winds toppled the crane Wednesday morning in southern Guangdong Province, according to China Daily.

At the time of the accident, a total of 139 people were reportedly in the structure, which authorities said was used as a dormitory and covered an area of 200 square meters (2,153 square feet).

Of those inside, 88 managed to escape while the others were recovered during rescue efforts, which saw the deployment of more than 200 firefighters and 40 fire trucks.