Families of Malaysia fire victims gather at morgue

(14 Sep 2017) A fire that blocked the only exit to an Islamic school dormitory killed 24 people, mostly teenagers, on the outskirts of Malaysia's capital early Thursday, officials said. A government official said a wall separating the victims from a second exit "shouldn't have been there." Firefighters and witnesses described scenes of horror - first of boys screaming for help behind barred windows as neighbours watched helplessly, and later of burned bodies huddled in a corner of the room. School employee Arif Mawardy said he woke up to what he thought was a thunderstorm, only to realise it was the sound of people screaming. Firefighters took an hour to put out the blaze, which started on the top floor of the three-story building, Kuala Lumpur police chief Amar Singh said. He said there were at least 24 charred bodies, 22 of them boys between 13 and 17, and two teachers. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...