New Zealand officials said the death toll from last week's earthquake, which currently stands at 154, could exceed 240, and Prime Minister John Key announced an investigation into whether the massive destruction could have been prevented.
According to previous police estimates, it was feared that about 200 people died in the earthquake that hit the second largest city in New Zealand, Christchurch.
As the new estimates were released, the prime minister promised a wide-ranging investigation into why so many office buildings collapsed in a city that was considered "earthquake-proof", AFP reported.
"We need to answer the people why so many people lost their lives and learn from this earthquake," said Key, stressing that it is necessary to investigate whether this destruction could have been prevented.
Yesterday, Key called on all New Zealanders to observe a minute's silence at 12:51, when the earthquake hit Christchurch exactly a week ago, to pay respect to the victims, and today the residents of this city buried the first victim, a five-month-old boy.
Rescue teams are still searching the ruins, without much hope of finding more survivors among them.
No survivors have been found since a woman was pulled from a collapsed building on Wednesday afternoon, the day after the quake.
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