DUSHANBE. Oct 13 (Interfax-AVN) - Four soldiers from the forces of the Tajik interior ministry were killed last night as an old castle wall collapsed on them in the town of Khodjent, in the north of the country.
A military unit was being moved from the castle territory to a different location, and the four soldiers were left behind to guard the munitions, a representative of the Tajik interior ministry told Interfax on Monday.
The tragedy was caused by extensive rains in the city over the last couple of days, which eroded the foundation of the wall. The tent in which the soldiers were staying was set up under the wall. During the rain, the wall fell right onto it and buried the people.
General Makhmadullo Khalimov, head of the emergencies ministry of Tajikistan, told reporters that the military unit did not ask for help from the emergency ministry and carried out the rescue operation on its own. However, it was not possible to get anyone out alive. "The deceased had no chance of getting out from under the debris by themselves," Khalimov said.