The fire started at a discount store, trapping dozens of people, including families, who were shopping inside. On Saturday, the authorities in the northern Mexican state of Sonora said the flames and smoke had killed at least 23 people.
The fire was in downtown Hermosillo, Sonora’s state capital. Alfonso Durazo, the state’s governor, confirmed the death toll in a video posted on social media. Among the victims, he said, were some minors. A dozen people had been injured and sent to hospitals, he added.
“No one will face this pain alone,” Governor Durazo said, adding that he had instructed the authorities to provide medical, psychological and other care to the families of the victims. He said he had also ordered a “thorough and transparent investigation” to find out what had caused the fire “and determine who is responsible.”
Officials said the fire happened at a branch of Waldo’s, one of the largest discount store chains in Mexico.
Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, said she had instructed the deployment of support teams to the scene.
Early on Sunday, Sonora’s attorney general, Gustavo Salas Chávez, said most of the victims had died after inhaling toxic gases, and that officials hoped to quickly identify the bodies with the help of relatives. He also stressed, as Sonora’s public security ministry had done before, that officials had ruled out any possibility that the fire was the result of an attack.
“So far, we have no evidence to suggest that the fire was intentional,” Mr. Salas Chávez told reporters. “Not even preliminary evidence to suggest that possibility. We simply don’t have it.”
In a statement, his office said on Sunday that the “working hypothesis” was that the fire was accidental and that the investigation was focusing on a transformer inside the building.
At least six people remained hospitalized, prosecutors added.
The tragedy hit close to home in Hermosillo, where in 2009, a fire at a day care center killed 49 children and set off national outrage. Investigators later said that sealed emergency exits, flammable materials, and a lack of fire alarms and sprinklers had likely contributed to the tragedy.
More than 20 people were convicted of charges related to that 2009 fire including for negligence and homicide. They included the owners of the facility and officials at the municipal, state and federal levels.
Andrés R. Martínez contributed reporting.
Emiliano Rodríguez Mega is a reporter and researcher for The Times based in Mexico City, covering Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
Mike Ives is a reporter for The Times based in Seoul, covering breaking news around the world.
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