Police were called to the Ica Maxi superstore in Kristinehamn at around 12.45pm on Monday in response to reports that the roof had caved in, according to a report in local newspaper Nya Wermlands-Tidningen.

“It does not seem that anyone was hurt but a police sniffer dog has been called in to search the ruins,” Lars Eidwall at the emergency services told the newspaper.

The store was immediately evacuated by staff and customers after the collapse, which affected around a third of the roof surface area. Four to five workers were on the roof at the time busy removing the large build-up of snow presumed to be the reason for the collapse.

The workers were able to throw themselves free from the roof in time to avoid being drawn into the wreckage at the entrance to the store.

According to preliminary reports from the scene, there have been no reported injuries. Shocked staff and customers are being cared for at the parish hall in Kristinehamn.