Russia: Suspect arrested in nightclub fire that killed 15

Russian police today arrested a man on suspicion of a major overnight fire at a nightclub in the city of Kostroma that killed 15 people.

Firefighters battled until the early hours of the morning to put out the blaze at the popular Poligon bar in this city, located about 300 kilometers northeast of Moscow, on the banks of the Volga River.

Russian news agencies initially reported that the fire may have started when a drunk threw a flare onto the nightclub’s dance floor.

“Police officers have identified and arrested the suspect for these illegal actions at an entertainment center in the city of Kostroma, which resulted in a fire and the death of people,” Russian police said in a statement.

“He has been handed over to the investigative authorities,” the statement added.

“He was in the bar with a woman, to whom he offered flowers while holding a flare. Then he went to the runway and launched the flare,” emergency response service sources told TASS.

The Russian Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case for “causing death by negligence”.

State television showed footage of the bar — which is housed in a former warehouse with logistics functions — engulfed in flames.

According to the authorities, the fire broke out at about 2:00 local time and was extinguished by 7:30 am.

According to a firefighter who made statements on local television, 50 firefighters and 20 fire engines were needed to extinguish the fire.

Initially, the governor of the region, Sergei Sitnikov, had declared via the Telegram platform that the dead were 13, but then the emergency services announced that two more bodies had been found.

About 250 people were evacuated from the entertainment complex where the fire broke out, which spread over an area of ​​3,500 square meters.

RES-EMP

Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.