RIGA, November 21 (RIA Novosti) – The roof of a grocery store collapsed in the Latvian capital Riga on Thursday evening, leaving at least four people dead and 20 injured, rescuers said.
Eyewitnesses said they heard a loud pop before about 500 square meters (5,300 square feet) of the roof caved in, but officials said there was so far no evidence of an explosion.
“The building has been destroyed completely. Apparently, some violations were committed during the construction,” Deputy Mayor Andris Ameriks said.
Local news site Delfi reported that a second collapse took place when rescuers were already working at the scene.
Three people died in the initial collapse, and the fourth was a firemen killed during the rescue operation.
At the moment of the collapse, construction works were under way to turn the building’s roof into a recreational area, Delfi reported.
An eyewitness told RIA Novosti that the building “fell like a house of cards.”
A spokesman for the city’s rescue and firefighting service said about 50 people could be buried under the rubble.
