MOSCOW, Nov 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russian police on Saturday detained a man suspected to have caused a huge fire overnight at a bar in the historic city of Kostroma that killed at least 15 people.
Fire fighters fought through the early hours to extinguish the blaze at the popular Poligon bar in the city, which is around 300 kilometres northeast of Moscow.
Russian agencies reported that the fire could have started after a drunk man fired a “flare gun” on the dance floor.
“Police officers identified and detained the suspect (behind) unlawful acts in an entertainment establishment in the city of Kostroma, which resulted in a fire and the death of people,” Russian police said.
“He has now been handed over to investigative authorities,” it added, without providing any further details.
Russia’s Investigative Committee opened a criminal case of “causing death by negligence”.
Authorities said the fire started at around 2:00 am local time (Saturday) and was put out at around 7:30 am.
Kostroma regional governor Sergei Sitnikov said 13 people were killed.
“Two more bodies were recovered. This means the number of victims is now 15,” the TASS news agency later quoted law enforcement sources as saying.
Around 250 people were evacuated from the building when it caught fire, authorities said earlier.
By day, the bar is a typical Russian “stolovaya” — a casual restaurant serving traditional food.
Kostroma, a city on the Volga river of around 230,000 people, is one of Russia’s oldest cities and famous for its medieval architecture and monasteries.
In 2009, a blaze at a nightclub in the Urals city of Perm killed 156 people while a 2018 fire killed 60 people in a shopping mall in the Siberian city of Kemerovo. — NNN-AGENCIES
