15 people are killed in a bar fire in Kostroma, Russia
MOSCOW:
At least 15 people were murdered in a fire at a tavern in the Russian city of Kostroma on Saturday, according to reports from Russian news organizations. According to the TASS news agency, an intoxicated man may have discharged a “flame gun” onto the dance floor before lighting the nighttime fire at the well-known bar.
Images of the “Polygon” bar, which is located in a single-story logistics center, engulfed in flames were broadcast on state television. According to the authorities, the fire was extinguished at 7:30 am local time after starting around 2:00 am. Although emergency services later reported that two more bodies had been discovered, governor Sergei Sitnikov had earlier said that 13 people had died.
“Two further bodies were found. This indicates that there are now 15 victims “Law enforcement sources were cited by the TASS news agency as stating. According to early reports, 250 people were rescued from the burning building in the city some 300 kilometers (180 miles) northeast of Moscow.
According to sources in the emergency services, the fire was most likely started by a drunken man brandishing a “flame pistol,” according to the TASS news agency. The insider explained to the agency that “he was spending time at the bar with a woman, ordered her flowers, and was holding a flare gun.”
Then he discharged it while on the dance floor.
According to the local emergency services, the fire has spread over 3,500 square meters.
It operates as a typical Russian “stolovaya” throughout the day, a relaxed eatery providing regional cuisine. It claims to be well-liked by traffic police and to be housed in a “distribution center.” Images on state television showed a large fire engulfing the one-story building as dozens of firefighters battled it.
Amid the blazing flames on its roof, the word “Polygon” could be seen. One firefighter said on regional state television that it took 50 persons and 20 fire engines to put out the fire. Due to the possibility of the structure collapsing, he claimed that the fire was particularly challenging to put out.
One of Russia’s oldest cities and home to about 230,000 inhabitants, Kostroma is renowned for its medieval architecture and monasteries.