Brazil nightclub fire: 'Most deaths due to asphyxiation'

The majority of deaths in a nightclub fire in southern Brazil are being blamed on asphyxiation, as people tried to escape the building, according to police.

Emergency services also struggled to access the club to assist those inside.

At least 230 people died when a band on stage started a fireworks display at the Kiss nightclub in the city of Santa Maria, in Rio Grande do Sul state.

The BBC's Gary Duffy says reports suggest there was only one exit.