Seventeen other people are still missing
Rescuers recovered more bodies from the explosion of a fireworks warehouse in Armenia, raising the death toll since Sunday’s blast to 16, the Emergencies Ministry said on Tuesday.
Seventeen other people remain missing, according to a statement, after explosions devastated a market warehouse in the Armenian capital Yerevan on Sunday, causing parts of the building to collapse and injuring at least 60 other people.
Emergency Minister Armen Pambukhchyan said a pregnant woman and a young child were among the dead, and search and rescue efforts were underway Tuesday morning.
A video shared through the Emergencies Ministry showed rescuers sifting through a smoking pile of debris and twisted metal.
It is not known what caused the explosion, which took place in the giant market of Surmalu, the government has ruled out terrorism.
News firm Armenpress cited the government as demanding a day of mourning after the end of the rescue operation. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the site on Monday with officials, the Emergencies Ministry said.
(Reporting via Olzhas Auyezov and Caleb Davis Edit via Raissa Kasolowsky)