YEREVAN, MAY 10, ARMENPRESS. The death toll in the explosion at a hotel in Havana reached 40 as Cuban rescue services pulled more bodies from the ruins, the Associated Press reports.

Dr. Julio Guerra, chief of hospital services at the Ministry of Health, said at a news conference that more bodies had been recovered in the last few hours. He added that there were still 18 people hospitalized for injuries from Friday's blast at the 19th century Hotel Saratoga.

The 96-room, five-star hotel in Old Havana was preparing to reopen after being closed for two years when an apparent gas leak ignited Friday, blowing the outer walls into the busy, midmorning streets just a block from Cuba's capitol.