Leaning tower of Alexandria: Residents saved by neighbouring building

The residents of a tower block in Egypt's second largest city have had the scare of their lives after their homes almost tumbled to the ground only to be rescued by the next door building. 

The 13-story residence in Alexandria's Azarita toppled over onto an adjacent high-rise late on Wednesday, miraculously saving the tenants and leaving the building leaning dangerously on the neighbouring building.

"At eight in the evening, bricks started to fall then it fell over at 2:30am. All the residents evacuated the building and surrounding homes after authorities urged us too through loudspeakers," local Hussein Hassan told Ruptly TV.

He blamed the near fatal incident on local politicians taking bribes to turn a blind eye to the construction of illegal buildings with low safety standards.

"They made us sleep in the streets overnight, promising they will move us to a shelter today," Hassan added.

Alexandria is notorious for is shoddily-constructed tower blocks with around 20 collapsing each year.

Inspectors have said illegal building, poor maintenance, and corruption are some of the reasons for the frequency of the catastrophic events.