MADRID, Oct 7, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - A building under construction in Madrid's touristic city centre collapsed on Tuesday, injuring three workers with some missing, Spanish emergency services said.

They said on X that firefighters were working at the scene near the Spanish capital's emblematic Plaza Mayor "after the collapse of various floor slabs" and that "the workers report some colleagues missing."

Madrid's mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida said on X that one of the injured workers had been taken to hospital.

Police working with drones had cordoned off the street, which was full of ambulances and police cars as dozens of onlookers gathered outside, AFP journalists saw.

Milagros Garcia Benito, who works at a hairdresser in front of the building, told AFP there was "an enormous explosion, it blew out the glass and everything".

"Lots of white dust, you couldn't see anything. Firefighters and police started arriving quickly," she said.

Madrid's municipal police told AFP neighbouring buildings were being evacuated.