Turkey: 17 girls die in dormitory blast

At least 17 girl students were killed and another 27 injured when their three-storey dormitory collapsed in central Turkey today.

Half a dozen others were believed to be trapped under the rubble as frantic rescue workers removed debris with shovels, pickaxes and their bare hands.

The state-run Anatolia news agency and other reports later said the explosion was probably caused by a gas leak.

Immediately after the blast the mayor of Taskent Mehmet Demirgu said: “We are hearing voices. I believe those inside the rubble will be saved,” But as more time passed, hopes of finding more survivors began to fade.

At least 27 students were brought out of the debris with injuries three with severe burns.

About 40 were staying at the dormitory. The students, aged eight to 16, were attending Koran courses during the school summer break.

One, Merve Avci, said she had got up to wash before pre-dawn prayers when she and some teachers heard a strange sound and went to the kitchen to investigate. There, they saw a loose gas pipe, and she returned to her room after the teachers told her to close the door.

Soon after, she smelled gas and there was an explosion. Half of the building collapsed, but she was in the section that remained intact. She said flames rose from the basement toward the top of the building.

At least four military helicopters ferried special rescue teams to the scene. Rescuers, aided by sniffer dogs, were trying to locate survivors.

In 2004, an 11-storey apartment building collapsed in Konya, killing 92 residents. The collapse was blamed on faulty refurbishment work.

A year earlier, a school dormitory in Bingol, south-east Turkey, collapsed in an earthquake, killing 83 children.