At Least 36 Killed by Fire in Guatemala Youth Center

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Families buried some of the 36 girls killed in a fire at an overcrowded government-run youth shelter as Guatemalan authorities worked Friday to determine exactly what happened. The death toll mounted as girls succumbed to gruesome burns from Wednesday's disaster, which officials said began when mattresses were set afire during a protest by the shelter's residents. Questions remained over why someone among the girls set the blaze and whether doors remained locked as the girls pleaded for their lives. Parents and relatives said many of the young people at the shelter, which had both female and male residents, had been sent there because of abuse, poverty or family problems. Others were ordered there by judges after run-ins with police, officials said. A casket holding 16-year-old Siona Hernandez Garcia was gently slipped into a niche at a Guatemala City cemetery on Friday and street musicians played hymns as workers bricked up the space. Maria Garcia, Siona's mother wailed and demanded justice. "Guatemala is full of violence," Garcia said. "They are raping and killing the poor's girls." At the entrance to Roosevelt Hospital, Claudia Tecun broke down in tears talking about her daughter Noemi Tecun Munoz, 17, who was being treated inside for burns over 70 percent of her body. "The doctors say there isn't much hope she will live," Tecun said, weeping. "I heard on the news that my daughter was one of the girls who set the f...
Source: JEMS: Journal of Emergency Medical Services News - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: Major Incidents News Mass Casualty Incidents Source Type: news