RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 20 — The death toll from an apartment building collapse in northeast Brazil reached nine yesterday, an official said, after the body of the last missing person was found in the rubble.

Seven people were pulled alive from the debris of the seven-story residential building in an upscale neighbourhood of Fortaleza city in Ceara state after it crumbled Tuesday.

Officials are still investigating the cause of the disaster, a spokeswoman for the Ceara public security department told AFP, confirming nine people had died.

The tower had been built illegally, G1 news site reported earlier in the week, citing the city council.

Building collapses in Brazil tend to happen in poorer neighbourhoods, known as favelas, where illegal construction is rampant.

In April, 24 people were killed when two buildings in a favela in Rio de Janeiro collapsed after several days of heavy rain. — AFP