Three Chinese students are confirmed killed in early Monday's deadly fire at a Moscow university, according to latest information from the Chinese Embassy in Moscow.
Chinese Ambassador to Russia Liu Guchang told Xinhua on Tuesday that 46 Chinese students were injured in the fire that killed a total of 36 foreign students and wounded some 200 others in the Patrice Lumumba Peoples' Friendship University in southwest Moscow.
Three of them have left the hospitals where 36 others are still under treatment. The Chinese embassy now is trying to locate the hospitals where another seven are treated. Some of the students are in relatively serious conditions but face no death threats, the ambassador said.
Most of the students were injured due to inhalation of smoke or got limb wounds while trying to escape from the five-story building.
The embassy confirmed earlier Tuesday that 12 Chinese students were still missing.
Liu promised that the embassy will continue to negotiate with competent Russian authorities on the identification of bodies and to obtain a clear information on the casualties of Chinese students.
Twelve Chinese teams will convey Chinese authorities' concern and solicitude and bring some life necessities to the injured students later Tuesday, according to the ambassador.
Latest information from Moscow prosecutor's office indicated that the fire was mainly caused by careless use of electric appliances or appliance malfunction, particularly due to an operating electric heater. But investigators are still considering several other possibilities and does not fully ruled out arson.
As students from Africa and Southeast Asia lived in the hostel, the detectives and investigators are also keeping an eye on skin heads.
Three female students from China, Nigeria and Vietnam lived in the room where the fire first broke out and the Nigerian woman, the only one in the dorm when the fire erupted, is under investigation and is currently being considered only as a witness.
Russian police said earlier that more than 500 foreign students were on the official list of dormitory residents. Most of the victims and the injured students were from Asian and African countries, including China, Vietnam, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Angola.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Tuesday that Moscow is taking additional steps to guarantee security in places where Russian and foreign students live, under orders from President Vladimir Putin.
He added that respective Russian agencies are offering all possible assistance to the survivors of the fire and thoroughly investigating the cause of the tragedy.
The minister expressed sincere condolences in connection with the deadly fire, saying that his ministry is in constant contact with the Moscow embassies of the countries affected.
(Xinhua News Agency November 26, 2003)
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