Latvia launches inquiry into deadly Riga store collapse

[alp227]

Source: BBC

A criminal investigation has begun after the roof of a supermarket in the Latvian capital Riga collapsed, Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis has said.

Twelve people are dead and dozens more are feared missing as rescue efforts continued through the night.

Three of those killed were emergency workers who were helping people trapped when more of the roof came down.

The cause of the collapse is unclear although reports say a garden was being constructed on the roof at the time.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25045879

[davidpdx]

1. This reminds me of the Sampoong Department store collapse in 1995

here in South Korea. The Sampoong Department Store collapse killed 502 people and injured 937. Structural failure was the cause of the collapse as the roof fell in. I wasn't here in Korea at the time, but it is one of the most infamous disasters in terms of building collapses aside from the World Trade Center Towers falling on 9/11.

[Blue_Tires]

6. I like to think there is a special place in hell awaiting the Sampoong owners....

[davidpdx]

9. Yeah, I think they eventually got pardoned if I remember correctly

Pardons here are handed out hand over fist especially for wealthy individuals. People complain about the number of pardons for the wealthy in the US, they are much much higher here.

In lieu of a sentence they should have been put in a crappy building and then have a crane with a wrecking ball hit the roof. Leave them in there for a few days and see how they like it without food or water.

[PoliticAverse]

2. "a possible explanation is the weight of soil being used to plant a winter garden on the ... roof"

(from the updated story).

I'm guessing that will be found to be the cause of the collapse.

[StrayKat]

5. Me too.

Those rooftop gardens are crazy heavy and can easily collapse an improperly reinforced roof.

[dipsydoodle]

3. Death Toll Rises in Latvian Store Collapse.

RIGA, November 22 (RIA Novosti) – The death toll in a grocery store collapse in the Latvian capital Riga rose to 38 on Friday afternoon as more bodies were recovered from the rubble, rescue officials said.

Earlier on Friday officals reported 14 dead, but the number continued to rise throughout the morning. More people are believed to be still trapped in the ruins of the Maxima store, the authorities said, after its roof fell in Thursday evening, but the exact number as of Friday morning remained unclear.

Earlier Mayor Nils Usakovs said some 70 people were still in the building.

Rescue services said some 40 injured people had been rescued from the rubble; many of them were hospitalized in serious condition.

A second collapse took place when rescuers were already working at the scene, local news site Delfi reported. At least three rescuers were among the victims, the police said early Friday.

http://en.ria.ru/world/20131122/184861610/Death-Toll-Rises-in-Latvian-Store-Collapse-.html

[bigworld]

4. Normally they'd blame "shoddy communist construction"

But since it was built in 2011 I'm sure they will blame shoddy capitalist construction for it, right?

[Eugene]

7. Death toll in Latvian store collapse jumps to 47

Source: Reuters

Death toll in Latvian store collapse jumps to 47

BY AIJA BRASLINA
RIGA Fri Nov 22, 2013 10:26am EST

(Reuters) - Rescue workers pulled bodies from the ruins of a collapsed supermarket in the Latvian capital Riga on Friday as the death toll rose to 47 in the Baltic state's worst disaster in decades.

Cranes lifted large slabs from the wreckage of the Maxima store, in a Riga suburb of grey, Soviet-era housing, to find those trapped after the roof collapsed late on Thursday when it was full of shoppers on their way home from work.

Rescue workers cleared away rubble from the store, which had occupied around 1,500 square meters (5,000 square feet), as ambulances and fire engines stood by.

Police said the death toll had reached 47 as of 10 a.m. ET, including three rescue workers. Thirty eight more were injured.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/22/us-latvia-collapse-idUSBRE9AK15F20131122

[JimboBillyBubbaBob]

8. Yeah,

This is weird. Maxima is a large Lithuanian company. The Latvians will be upset about this I'm sure.