The Sonora State Attorney General’s Office (FGJES) declared that it is investigating potential criminal, civil, and administrative liabilities in the fire and explosion at the Waldo’s store in downtown Hermosillo against private individuals and public servants who allegedly violated Civil Protection regulations. State Attorney General Gustavo Rómulo Salas Chávez stated that “if the business does not have the proper documentation, it is operating improperly.”
The fire at the store, located on Dr. Noriega Street between Juárez and Matamoros Streets, resulted in the deaths of 23 people and left a dozen injured. According to the Attorney General, summonses are already being issued to municipal, state, and federal officials. “All those involved will be required to appear before the public prosecutor,” Salas Chávez said at a press conference.
The official investigation is focusing on two lines of inquiry: the absence or revoked validity of operating and civil protection permits, and the review of the building’s electrical installations, including a particular transformer that is believed to have triggered the fire.
In addition, the Sonora government ordered the temporary closure of all 68 Waldo’s stores in the state until regulatory compliance is verified. The Sonora Attorney General reported that municipalities are responsible for closing or requesting the voluntary closure of these stores once the inspection processes are completed.
Furthermore, it was reported that three people remain hospitalized, one of them with severe burns requiring transfer abroad for specialized treatment. The identified victims have been assisted by the state victim assistance system, which provides legal counsel, funeral services, and psychosocial support.
The building remains secured as an investigation zone so that experts can determine the exact origin of the fire, the role played by the electrical system, the solar panels on the roof and the particular transformer that exploded inside the store, which did not have an authorized internal Civil Protection program since 2021, according to the monitoring of the Government Secretariat.
Source: jornada
