Latvian PM Resigns After Shopping Mall Disaster

Valdis DombrovskisLatvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis resigned Wednesday over a shopping mall disaster in the small Baltic nation that left more than 50 people dead, ria.ru reports.

Dombrovskis’ resignation, which will trigger the fall of the current Latvian government, was announced after a meeting with the country’s president.

The walls and roof of Maxima shopping mall in the Latvian capital, Riga, collapsed on November 22, killing dozens of people and trapping hundreds in the rubble.

Fifty-four people were killed and another 40 injured.

President Andris Berzins said Saturday that a murder inquiry should be initiated over the incident.

Dombrovskis has been prime minister since 2009.

He said he decided to resign because “the country needs a government that is in a condition to solve the current situation,” Delfi news agency reported.