Five people detained in connection with fire that killed eight people in Russia

Five people, including a representative of the construction company and the general director of the construction company, have been detained as part of the investigation into a fire that killed eight people at a construction site in Moscow on April 28, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation reported.

"As part of the criminal case, the beneficiary of the construction company, who alone manages the construction company, the technical customer and the general contractor for the construction of the facility, and the general director of the construction company have been detained," the Investigative Committee noted.

According to the information, the fire was possible due to the systematic failure of officials of the construction company, the technical customer and the general contractor to comply with fire safety, labor protection and construction standards.

"In addition, the direct causes of the tragedy were the lack of a functioning automatic fire alarm and fire extinguishing systems, the unauthorized accumulation of flammable materials, the location of about 20 household kiosks made of flammable materials without windows and a ventilation system on one of the floors of the building. At the same time, the closure of one of the two evacuation stairs did not allow for the timely evacuation of people in a critical situation," the report said.

It was added that a criminal case was initiated under the elements of a crime provided for in Part 3 of Article 216 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (violation of safety regulations during construction work, causing the death of eight people through negligence).

As a result of the incident, 8 people died from acute poisoning from combustion products, and three people suffered serious damage to their health.