US to send team to probe Honduras prison fire

The United States will send a team of experts from its Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to help probe the deadly fire at a Honduran prison, officials said Thursday.

National Police officers stand guard outside the Forensic Medicine Institute in Tegucigalpa, where the charred remains of those killed at the overcrowded Comayagua prison, thought to be the world's worst-ever jail fire, are being handed to their relatives. The United States will send a team of experts from its Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to help probe the deadly fire.

The ATF's international response team will, at the request of the Honduran government, aid in "technical and forensic assistance."

"The ATF lead element of the team will arrive today (Thursday) and begin reconstructing the scene, identifying the origin of the fire, conducting interviews, and sifting through debris to obtain evidence related to the blaze," a statement said.

The team includes "veteran special agents who have post blast and fire origin-and-cause expertise; forensic chemists; explosives enforcement officers; fire protection and electrical engineers; accelerant detection canines; explosives detection canines; intelligence support, computer forensic support and forensic audit support."

The death toll from the blaze at the overcrowded Comayagua jail has hit 355, in what is believed to be the worst-ever prison fire.