Nearly 500 personnel are working to dismantle rubble at the scene of the arena attack in Moscow, the Russian Emergencies Ministry said on Saturday.
“In the morning, they started the dismantling of the most difficult part: the auditorium, where the ceiling partially collapsed,” the ministry said. “The work will be carried out throughout the day.”
The Russian Investigative Committee has said that, as work continues at the site, the number who died in the attack would likely rise. At least 115 people have so far been confirmed dead. The names of 37 people who died in the attack were published Saturday by the regional government’s Health Ministry.
As work continues at the site, more testimony has emerged from people who were at the complex on Friday evening. One woman said on Instagram: “They [the assailants] were standing there at the exit. We got up and started walking. They saw us. Some of them ran back and started shooting at people. I fell on the floor and pretended I was dead. And the girl next to me was killed.”
“Then the flames flared up and they closed the door. They probably couldn’t lock it. I lay breathing under the door. After some time, I crawled out, looked around, there was smoke everywhere, and I crawled towards the exit,” she said.
The Kremlin is cancelling mass events scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, according to state media RIA Novosti, and many museums are temporarily closed.
Russian state media published images and video Saturday of queues at blood-donor centers in Moscow after Friday’s attack.
