Church balcony falls in Philippines during prayer, leaving one dead and 53 injured

During a crowded mass on Ash Wednesday, when millions of people attend services, a Catholic church balcony fell in the Philippines, killing an elderly woman and wounding 53 others, according to local disaster officials.

One of the busiest dates on the Church calendar, the day marks the beginning of Lent in Asia's Catholic outpost.

An 80-year-old woman expired from her chest injuries at a local hospital, Gina Ayson, civil defence chief of San Jose del Montenear Manilatold AFP.

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Termites had undermined the Saint Peter the Apostle church's 30-year-old wooden gallery, she claimed.

During the massit fell, seemingly as a result of the extra weight, sending worshippers to the aisle below on the ground floor, according to Ayson.

She told AFP that "a part of the fallen construction was identified by city building officials to be infested with termites."

"From the outside, it appeared nice. We were unaware that it was being consumed from the inside out."

About 400 people were attending mass at the time, she added. The remaining victims, who were primarily elderly, had minor injuries like bruises.

Ayson reports that as investigators examined the building's structural safety, Mayor Arthur Robes issued an order to close the damaged church.

Images that Robes shared on his Facebook page showed pieces of the wooden balcony that hung less than three feet (or less than a metre) above the bottom floor, which was covered with debris, broken plastic chairs, and church pews.

(Withinputs from agencies)