SIMFEROPOL, Dec. 26 – The death toll in a blast that ripped through a five-storey apartment block in southern Ukraine has risen to 27 people, Reuters reported Friday, citing the emergency ministry.

The suspected gas explosion on Wednesday flattened all five floors of the block in the Black Sea resort of Yevpatoria, leaving huge piles of rubble.

A family of five was among the dead, the ministry said. Rescuers pulled out 21 survivors from the debris of concrete, wires and smashed furniture.