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       #Post#: 164--------------------------------------------------
       ORPHANAGE FIRE IN EASTONIA  (JUST WEST OF RUSSIA)
       By: wolfie Date: February 20, 2011, 6:08 pm
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       Orphanage Blaze Kills 10 Children in EstoniaFeb 20, 2011 – 12:07
       PM
       .Text Size Print this page|EmailShare on FacebookShare on
       TwitterShare on DiggShare on LifestreamTimur Nisametdinov
       
       AP TALLINN, Estonia -- A fire raced through an orphanage for
       disabled children in western Estonia on Sunday, killing 10 of
       them, a rescue service spokesman said.
       There were 37 children and nine adults inside the wooden
       building when the fire started at 2:30 p.m. (1230GMT) in the
       coastal town of Haapsalu, said Viktor Saaremets, a spokesman for
       the Western Estonia Rescue Services Center.
       "By the time rescue workers and firefighters arrived at the
       scene three or four minutes later the building was completely in
       flames," he said.
       Ten children were killed, one adult was injured, Saaremets
       said.Most of the victims were wheelchair-bound and were unable
       to escape the rapidly spreading fire, he said.
       The others were evacuated to a nearby building and were not
       hurt, Saaremets said.
       The cause of the fire was not immediately clear.
       "Fire safety inspectors went there in January and found that the
       building met all the necessary criteria," Saaremets said.
       Estonian newspaper Postimees showed pictures on its website of
       flames tearing into a one-story wooden building. Victims were
       carried out from a window, as thick smoke billowed from the
       roof.
       The Estonian government met for an emergency meeting after the
       blaze and declared Monday a nationwide day of mourning.
       Estonian president Toomas Hendrik Ilves expressed his
       condolences.
       "The tragic accident in the Haapsalu orphanage shocked the whole
       of Estonia today," Ilves said in a brief statement.
       Local officials in Haapsalu told Estonian media that the number
       of victims was unlikely to rise.
       Sponsored Links The Haapsalu orphanage was opened as a home for
       disabled children in 1950, when Estonia was occupied by the
       Soviet Union, according to its website. In 1996 it moved into
       the current building, which was funded by the Estonian
       government as well as Swedish, Finnish and U.S. donors.
       Lars Nexe, a Swedish philanthropist who led the project, said
       the construction material was shipped from Sweden and that the
       building met Swedish safety standards.
       Nexe said the home admits disabled children and teenagers from
       all over Estonia, nearly all of them orphans.
       "The section that burned down completely was the section with
       the most severely handicapped children," he said.
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