13 children 6 adults perish indohamallblaze
Three two-year-old triplets from New Zealand were among the victims who perished after a fire broke out in an upmarket shopping mall in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday.
Lillie, Jackson and Willsher Weekes died after they became trapped when a staircase leading up to the Villaggio mall's first floor nursery collapsed.
Firefighters smashed their way through the roof of the building to try to rescue those inside, but they
Firefighters smashed their way through the roof of the building to try to rescue those inside
were too late to save the trio. A further ten children and six adults also died.
Four of the children killed were Spanish citizens living in the small Arab emirate, the Spanish Foreign Ministry said. It did not identify the children, citing Spanish privacy regulations.
Also, a 3-year-old French child was among the victims, the deputy minister for overseas French citizens, Yamina Benguigui, said in a statement.
The triplets' father, Martin Weekes, is listed on his LinkedIn networking site as a senior adviser at Qatar Media Services and a former chief executive of Auckland's Eden Park sports stadium.
The fire broke out at the Villagio Mall in Doha's west end a short time before midday. Smoke was seen billowing from the building as ambulances and police vehicles blocked entry to the complex. It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze.
(©Daily Mail, London)