Fire Breaks Out in A Shopping Mall in Moscow Region

By Staff, Agencies

A fire broke out in the OBI store in the Mega Khimki shopping mall in the city of Khimki in the Moscow region on Friday, the regional department of the Russian Ministry of Emergencies announced.

The department said the fire covers an area of 7,000 square meters. Cans filled with paint and aerosols are exploding in the store at the scene, according to Sputnik.

Emergency services have confirmed that at least one person died as a result of the fire.

Some 30 people and nine units of equipment are engaged in extinguishing the fire.

"The fire at 7:05 a.m. [Moscow time, 04:00 GMT] was assigned difficulty number four of five," the press office of Russia's Ministry of Emergencies said.

The ministry's aviation was put on alert due to the fire and is ready to assist in extinguishing operations, the ministry added.

Moscow region's prosecutor's office launched an investigation and will examine compliance with Russian law, including fire safety. Deliberate acts, "as in arson", are being considered as a possible cause of the fire.