An inferno rips through a high-rise building in Fryazino, Russia, believed to house a top-secret research center, resulting in multiple fatalities and harrowing scenes of people jumping from windows.
Russia, Bollywood Fever: An inferno has ripped through what is believed to be a top-secret research center in Russia, with horrifying pictures showing people jumping and falling from the burning building.
Reports citing emergency services indicate that at least eight people were killed in the fire-ravaged high-rise.
Russian media reports that one man jumped and another fell to his death from the eight-storey block, while Shot media reported that as many as four had jumped from high windows. One of the men who fell had already suffered horrific burns. The fate of the others was not immediately clear.
Explosions were heard inside the burning block as 100 firefighters battled to rescue people trapped within the building, located in Fryazino, near Moscow.
The building is thought to house the Platan Research Institute, which develops radio-electronic systems used by Russia’s Defence Ministry to jam signals, according to Newsweek. However, Russia’s state-owned electronics holding reported that the building has no relation to the Platan Research Institute or the defense industry, claiming that “in the late 90s it became private property.”
One theory behind the cause of the fire is that gas cylinders inside the scientific institute had exploded, though the cause has not yet been confirmed.
Harrowing footage showed people struggling to escape smoke and fire, with victims seen emerging before throwing themselves off the building in a bid to escape. Chilling pictures also appeared to show workers looking out helplessly through a smashed window as they awaited rescue.
The fire had spread to 43,000 square feet, according to reports, gutting the vast building. It was unclear why there was such a slow response to use helicopter firefighters to deluge the building with water.
Russia has suffered an extraordinary array of fires this year amid the war in Ukraine. Last year, a huge fire burned down an online shopping warehouse in St. Petersburg used as a location for recruiting migrant workers for Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine. In another incident in March, a major fire tore through a factory producing engines.
As investigations continue, the full impact of this latest fire remains to be seen, with the loss of life and extensive damage underscoring the tragic events.
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