Fifteen people died, a seriously burned person was hospitalized, and the fate of another remains unknown, said Friday the regional government. “Nothing threatens the population” neighboring communities, highlighted the department.
Le Monde with AFP
A fire at an explosive manufacturing plant in the Riazan Russian area, about 200 km south of Moscow, made 15 dead, announced on Friday, October 22, the regional authorities.
“Fifteen people are dead, a person was hospitalized, with serious burns, and the fate of another remains unknown,” said the regional government in a statement, while a previous assessment made state of seven Dead and nine missing.
More than 170 firefighters and rescuers were dispatched to the scene to control the fire. “Nothing threatens the population” neighboring communities, highlighted the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
The incident occurred in a plant in Elastik, specializing in the manufacture of industrial explosives for civil, according to its site, But which also has “production capacities” of ammunition.
Considered as a “strategic enterprise” by the Russian government, it belongs, always according to the company’s website, the State Conglomerate Rostec, which includes a set of companies providing industrial or high-tech products. Civil and military sectors.
Detached infrastructure
The fire would have been caused by a “violation of technological processes” and “safety standards”, according to a source belonging to the police, cited by the Interfax press agency.
Explosions and accidental or murderers are common in Russia, due to the obsolescence of infrastructure, often dating from the Soviet era, or non-compliance with safety standards.
In December 2020, eleven people had perished during a fire in a retirement home in the Ural region. In January 2020, eleven and four people who died in separate fires, Tomsk and Moscow, in migrants, respectively, in migrants.
The most serious fire in recent years dates from 2018, when 64 people died after the flames ravaged a shopping center, including alarm systems and emergency exits were inoperative.
In St. Petersburg, it is a historical plant, the Manufacture Nevski, which was destroyed by the fire in April 2021. The building, dilapidated and partially abandoned, housed in particular of industrial workshops, but also offices.
Accidents in factories, the storage sites of explosives or fireworks are also quite common in Russia, especially with regard to the munitions deposit of the army. In October 2020, a fire of brush caused a fire and powerful explosions in a depot of ammunition, in the region of Riazan, resulting in the evacuation of about 2,000 people from neighboring villages. This type of disaster can last several days.