Number of deaths in highrise fire in China put at 53; four arrested
A 15-year-old building in a poor neighbourhood in New Delhi, India, collapsed late Monday 15 November, killing 66 people and injuring at least 70 (Times of India reports 80 injured) of the 200 who are believed to have been living there. Authorities are blaming water damage to the foundation, caused by unusually heavy monsoons earlier this year, reports CNN. The building owner, Amrit Singh, has fled with his family and is being sought by police, say Indian media.
A highrise fire that killed 53 in China Monday has resulted in the arrests of four people on charges related to using unlicensed welders, according to Xinhua. Scores more were injured, of the 440 people who lived in the building, which was being renovated.
Scotland’s largest airline, Flyglobespan, closed down Wednesday 16 December, with 800 jobs lost and 4,500 travelers stranded, most of them in Spain, Portugal, Cyprus and Egypt, according to the BBC. The company flew 1.5 passengers in 2008. The Scotsman reports that thousands more people have flight reservations with the airline and not all will be able to get their money back. Iata (International Air Traffic Association), at an annual media conference earlier this week said that while major airlines are not expected to fail in coming months, smaller airlines are “fragile” and not all will survive a financially rough 2009, which comes at the end of a decade where the airline industry ended with losses eight years out of 10.
Links to other sites: BBC, Flyglobespan, Iata, The Scotsman
[Times of India video] A bridge for a subway line, under construction in Delhi, India, has collapsed, killing five workers. A pillar supporting part of the bridge gave way. At least 16 people were injured in the accident. Al Jazeera
video, Times of India
