Russia says final death toll in mall fire hits 64

26 March 2018, 3:09 pm

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Russia’s emergency situations minister says 64 people are confirmed to have died in a fire in a shopping mall in Siberia.

Vladimir Puchkov tells a televised briefing that firefighters have finished combing through the four floors of the shopping mall in the city of Kemerovo. Six bodies have not yet been recovered, he said.

Puchkov would not immediately say how many of the victims were children.

The Winter Cherry mall was a popular destination for families and it was packed with visitors yesterday, the first weekend of the school recess, when the fire broke out.

Witnesses said the fire alarm did not go off and that staff did not arrange for an evacuation at the shopping mall, which was converted from a former confectionery factory in 2013.

— AP