A firefighter has died after being trapped in a building that caught fire in Philadelphia and then collapsed.

The victim was not immediately identified but Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy said he had been with the department for 27 years.

The building caught fire just before 2am on Saturday, Mr Murphy said. The blaze had been put out but then the structure collapsed at 3.24am.

Four other firefighters and an inspector with the city’s Department of Licenses and Inspections have been rescued from the rubble. Mr Murphy said they were in stable condition in hospital.

Numerous firefighters were at the scene as the rescue effort unfolded, and some were seen hugging or wiping tears from their eyes.

“You can’t predict this,” Mr Murphy told reporters at a news conference. “This was just a catastrophic accident that has really hurt our department.”