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17 students dead in Turkey girls dorm collapse
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-08-01 22:22 ANKARA - A three-story girls dormitory collapsed in central Turkey on Friday, killing at least 17 students and setting off a search for a half dozen people believed to be under the rubble, authorities said.
Frantic rescue workers removed debris with shovels, pickaxes and their bare hands in search of any survivors. The girls, between ages of 8 and 16, were attending Quran courses during the school summer break. "We are hearing voices. I believe those inside the rubble will be saved," Balcilar Mayor Melmut Demirgul told reporters hours after the collapse. But hopes of finding any more survivors began to fade later Friday. Rescue teams pulled out the body of one girl in the afternoon, raising the death toll to 17, Anatolia reported. Demirgul initially told reporters a large gas canister explosion was believed to have caused the collapse. However, the state-run Anatolia news agency and other reports later said the explosion was most likely caused by a leak from a gas installation there. Interior Minister Besir Atalay, who traveled to the area, said at least 16 were killed. He said an estimated five or six students were waiting to be rescued. Besides the fatalities, at least 27 students were brought out of the debris with injuries, said Hasan Kucukkendirci, who heads the local health authority. Galip Sef, an official with the local emergency services, said three of the students sustained severe burns. Provincial Gov. Osman Aydin said an estimated 40 to 45 girls were staying at the dormitory. |
