A fire at the Russian nightclub “Poligon” in the Russian city of Kostroma spread quickly and killed at least 15 people.
The fire quickly spread at the club, which has been popular for decades. According to the authorities, it ended up burning in an area of about 3,500 square meters. It took five and a half hours for firefighters to bring the fire under control, according to Russian news agencies, according to local officials. The roof of the flat building collapsed, it was said.
Firearm fired on the dance floor
A drunk who fired a flare gun is held responsible. “He was hanging out with a woman at the bar, giving her flowers and holding a flare gun the whole time,” Tass said, citing an emergency services worker. “So he went to the dance floor and fired them.” The police arrested a suspect. The statement did not initially indicate whether it was the drunk.
At least 15 dead
There is still no exact information on how many people died. The numbers are constantly being corrected upwards, as of Saturday afternoon, 15 deaths are assumed. The number of injured is also still unclear. Russian state television reported from the crash site that 250 people could be brought to safety.
According to its website, the “Poligon” is a simple traditional pub during the day but transforms into a dance bar at night. The restaurant is therefore particularly popular with traffic police.
Kostroma is located about 300 kilometers northeast of Moscow, at the confluence of the eponymous river and the Volga. The city, which has around 230,000 inhabitants, is one of the oldest cities in Russia and is famous for its monasteries and medieval architecture.
The claim that it was likely the indoor fireworks were to blame for the blaze was given following an update from the news outlet on November 5th. corrected at 1pm.