Estonia mourned victims of orphanage fire
Baku, February 22 (AZERTAC). Estonia observed a day of mourning Monday, February 21, for eight disabled children and two adults who were killed when a fire destroyed an orphanage in Haapsalu. Churches in Haapsalu joined in ringing bells at precisely 2.30 p.m., the time of the first alert Sunday, while President Toomas Hendrik Ilves solemnly inspected the charred ruins, laying a candle among others brought by Estonians paying homage.
Interior Minister Marko Pomerants said that investigators hoped to determine “in the nearest future” what caused the blaze at the orphanage for disabled children in Haapsalu, located some 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of Tallinn. Authorities initially said all 10 victims of Sunday`s fire were children. But on Monday they said eight of those killed were children aged 7 to 16, and two were adults, aged 20 and 21. Media reports said the adults were also residents of the home.
The Baltic country`s government announced that it was prepared to financially help the relatives of the victims and to rebuild the orphanage, which was built in 1996 with help from Swedish and Finnish donations.
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