Explosion Wreaks Havoc in Russian Shopping Mall

By Staff, Agencies

A major fire occurred at a shopping mall in the southern Russian city of Vladikavkaz on Wednesday morning, after a powerful explosion went off inside, according to officials and media reports.

The incident took place at the Alania Mall, a major shopping and entertainment center in the capital of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania in the North Caucasus. The emergency services said one person was killed and two others were injured, citing preliminary reports from the scene. The fire affected around 800 square meters and was put out in about an hour, according to official updates.

The mall was opened in 2015 and has a total area of 28,000 square meters, including the basement and four floors above ground. The damaged part is at the top center of the building, according to footage shared by the Emergencies Ministry, which shows shattered windows and smoke coming out of the gaps, with a heavily damaged canopy over the central entrance.

An explosion strong enough to shake the entire building caused the fire, witnesses told the media. TASS cited official sources as saying a gas leak caused the blast. Other outlets suggested that a gas cylinder was the likely cause. The fourth floor hosts a food court, and the building is not connected to the gas mains, according to North Ossetian Governor Sergey Menyailo.

Media sources identified the person killed in the incident as a 57-year-old woman, though it was not immediately clear whether she was an employee or a customer.