Death toll from gas station blast in Dagestan rises to 11

The death toll from an explosion at a gas station in the city of Makhachkala, the administrative center of Russia's Dagestan region, rose to 11, the country's Emergency Situations Ministry said.

"In Dagestan, rescuers of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia extracted another victim from the rubble," the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Special equipment is being used to clear the rubble, while the fire that broke out after the explosion was extinguished, it said.

Following the incident, the Russian Investigative Committee opened a criminal case on the possible violation of safety rules.

Dagestan authorities declared September 28 a day of mourning to honor the people who died in the explosion.