The death toll from a gas explosion which shook an apartment block in the eastern Slovak town of Presov rose to least seven people, the local fire department said on Saturday, adding that shoddy reconstruction had complicated rescue efforts.
Fire ripped through the top five floors of the 12-storey building on Friday, causing the roof and a staircase of the block to cave in, possibly caused by a build-up of combustible gas from a leak.
One person, who may have been trapped on the top floor where the blast and subsequent fire hit the hardest, is still missing, the fire department said.
“Overall, we assume that the number of fatalities on site is eight, seven confirmed and located (so far),” the state fire department state headquarters said in a statement on Saturday.
The rescuers evacuated 34 people from the building. Their efforts were complicated by faulty reconstruction, the local fire chief said at the site.
Via Reuters
