Market roof collapse kills 52 in Moscow

THE concave, snow-covered roof of a large Moscow market collapsed early yesterday, killing at least 52 people.

Rescuers were forced to clear away concrete slabs and metal beams to reach possible survivors trapped in the wreckage, officials said.

A fire broke out on the edge of the collapse site mid-afternoon, sending acrid smoke billowing into the air. Emergency Situations Ministry spokesman Viktor Beltsov said it erupted when a spark from an electric saw, used to cut through metal, ignited some paint, and that it posed no threat to anyone trapped in the wreckage.