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South Korean investigators search in factory ruins after fire killed 23, mostly Chinese migrants

Forensic and other experts combed through the charred ruins of a factory building near South Korea’s capital to find the cause of a devastating fire that killed 23 people, mostly Chinese migrant workers, in one of the country›s deadliest blazes in years.

More than 100 people were working at the factory in Hwaseong city, just south of Seoul, when the fire tore through it Monday morning. Security cameras showed smoke engulfing the second-floor worksite of the factory, soon after sparks were detected from a site where lithium batteries were stored, fire officials said.

One victim was pronounced dead at a hospital, and fire workers retrieved 21 bodies from the factory one by one later Monday.

An additional body was recovered yesterday.

18 victims were Chinese, two were South Korean and one was Laotian.

The nationalities of the other two dead were being verified.

Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming visited the factory site on Monday night and reportedly expressed condolences to the victims.

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