Russian media: Fire at Defense Ministry building in Moscow

Footage shared on social media by Russian state media showed a column of black, spiraling smoke billowing from a third-floor window of the Defense Ministry headquarters on Znamenka Street, near the Kremlin. About 50 people were evacuated as the fire broke out.

"The fire was visible from a window on the third floor," the Russian emergencies ministry said.

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 1.

A column of smoke spirals out of a third-floor window of the Defense Ministry headquarters on Znamenka Street, near the Kremlin. Photo: East2west News

The fire was extinguished immediately and there were no casualties, TASS news agency reported.

Russia's Interfax news agency quoted a statement from the Ministry of Defense as saying: "At about 19:30 (local time), at one of the administrative buildings of the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, on-duty staff discovered smoke rising from the premises. The fire department and the Ministry of Emergency Situations arrived at the scene."

The fire covered an area of 60 square meters, TASS quoted local emergency services as saying.

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 2.

Smoke billows from a third-floor window of the Defense Ministry building at 19 Znamenka Street in Moscow, Russia. Photo: East2west News

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 3.

Fire trucks at the scene on the evening of April 5. Photo: East2west News

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 4.

Fire trucks at the scene on the evening of April 5. Photo: RIA

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 5.

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 6.

Regarding the cause of the fire, the Russian Emergencies Ministry said it was due to a water heater failure. Initially, the cause of the fire at the Ministry of Defense building was announced as "an electrical system failure".

According to the Daily Mail , the fire broke out at a building called Apraksin House, which has housed the administrative offices of the Russian Ministry of Defense since 1987. The building is close to the headquarters of the Ministry of Defense, a few hundred meters from the Kremlin.

The Russian Ministry of Defense has several buildings throughout the capital. Along Znamenka Street are the old General Staff building and the old Alexander Military School.

The fire broke out as Russian President Vladimir Putin was holding talks with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko at the Kremlin.

Truyền thông Nga: Cháy tại tòa nhà Bộ Quốc phòng ở Moscow - Ảnh 7.

The fire broke out as Russian President Vladimir Putin was holding talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Photo: EPA

Last year, six people died after a major fire broke out at a key Russian defense research institute in Tver, northwest of Moscow. Some were injured by smoke inhalation, while others jumped out of windows to escape, resulting in injuries.

The fire is believed to have started on the second floor of the building and then spread to the three floors above. Initial investigations suggest that a short circuit may have caused the fire. However, the delay in the arrival of firefighters may have caused the fire to spread further.

Source