The condition of the woman of Roma origin, who was seriously injured in the wall collapse in downtown Sofia, remains critical, Pirogov Emergency Institute doctors reported Saturday.

Vassilka Miteva, 24, suffered a heavy skull-brain trauma and her life is still in danger even after the six-hour surgery she underwent Friday night.

The victim was hurt along with another woman while they were rummaging an old building, looking for construction materials to steal.

The incident occurred at about 5 pm on Totleben Boulevard on Friday and the initial reports quickly revived painful memories from September 2006 when a building located in the very heart of the capital collapsed, killing two young women, who were passing by in their car.

A man, part of the gang, was also injured in the incident but doctors decided he is in good condition and let him go home.

The building, located in the area of the Balkancar-Sredets company, which was privatised in 2006, has obtained all permits for demolition so that the site is cleared for the construction of a new building, officials announced.

After the news of the collapse broke Interior Minister Rumen Petkov, Interior Chief Secretary Valentin Petrov, Sofia mayor Boyko Borisov and his deputy Velitsar Stoilov all swarmed around the building.

"The collapse was no cause for panic. People should stop stealing. The women entered the building without permission, of course, which shows that God is punishing those who steal," Mayor Boyko Borisov commented.

That was the third in a string of building collapses since the beginning of the year, the first of which killed a 22-year-old woman in the coastal town of Varna.