Rescuers found a second victim after a blast tore through an apartment block on Ternopilska Street in Khmelnytskyi, raising the death toll to two, local governor Serhii Tyurin reported on Oct. 29.
At 2:24 a.m. a body of a woman born in 1973 was found under the debris, and at 5:12 the body of a man born in 1983 was recovered.
The bodies have been sent for forensic medical examination to determine the causes of death.
Additional forces have been involved in the work — high-rope rescuers from the State Emergency Rescue Center and DELTA special-purpose unit. Search-and-rescue operations are continuing around the clock.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation.
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On Oct. 28, an explosion partially destroyed the apartment block in Khmelnytskyi; five residents were injured. According to preliminary information, the blast in the multi-storey residential building was caused by household gas, the Khmelnytskyi Oblast police reported.