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Tragedy strikes a Ukrainian gambling hall full of slot machines when a fire broke out earlier this week.  The flames took the lives of 9 patrons, 11more were wounded.  According to officials the fire started in the late evening but the gambling hall was fully engulfed with flames just before 1 a.m.  The gambling hall was located in the city of Dnipropetrovsk.

There were dozens of patrons occupying the gambling hall that evening.  They had gathered to watch the soccer match up between Barcelona and Chelsea for the Champinos League semi finals. 

At this point there is no evidence of foul play.  Media images of the gaming hall are horrific, with black and gutted slot machines still lining the floors of the charred gambling venue.  Officials believe that the fire originated from on of the many slot machines in the gaming hall.

“The main version for the moment is that the fire started in a slot machine,” said Emergencies Minister Volodymyr Shandra.

“There is no evidence of arson or any sort of explosion from gas.”

Dnipropetrovsk happens to be the home town of the current Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.  She flew to the city shortly after the tragedy to chair a cabinet meeting about the fire.

Apparently among the dead were two female employees of the hall.  As the fire grew, the security staff became overwhelmed by the smoke and flames and that is when rescue workers and firefighters were summoned to the scene.

It appears that lives could have been saved but the gaming hall violated fire regulations by placing slot machines too close together and leaving no room for patrons to escape in the event of an emergency.

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