This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/europe/6163835.stm

The article has changed 11 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 6 Version 7
Moscow hospital fire kills dozens Moscow drug clinic fire kills 45
(about 5 hours later)
A fire at a Moscow drug rehabilitation hospital has killed 45 women, most of them young addicts. A fire at a Moscow hospital for drug addicts has killed 45 women and at least eight more suffered carbon monoxide poisoning or other injuries.
Officials say they are "90% certain" that arson caused the blaze at Moscow's Hospital 17, in the south-west of the city, early on Saturday morning. Officials say they are "90% certain" arson caused the overnight fire at Hospital 17 in the city's south-west.
All appeared to have died of smoke asphyxiation even before the first firefighters reached the building. All appear to have died of smoke asphyxiation before fire crews reached the five-storey building.
Recommendations earlier this year to close the hospital on fire safety grounds were reportedly ignored. Officials say the building had just one exit and windows were barred. Fire safety concerns had been raised before.
Fire safety officers visited the hospital in February and March, and called for its temporary closure after their second visit, said Russia's chief fire inspector Yuri Nenashev. Judging by the placement of the bodies, they really tried to get out Alexander Chupriyandeputy Russian emergencies minister
"Unfortunately this decision was not adopted," said Mr Nenashev. The fire, which broke out about 0140 (2240 GMT) in a second-floor kitchen, was relatively small but there was very heavy smoke, possibly from burning plastic wall coverings, Russian media report.
Firefighters rescued 160 people from the building, and 10 are being treated in hospital for carbon monoxide poisoning. Moscow's chief fire inspector said their lives remained in the balance. "Everyone who died in this fire, was dead before the first fire engines arrived," said Deputy Emergencies Minister Alexander Chupriyan.
Forty-two people died at the scene, with others dying later in hospital. Two staff are among the dead. He added that crews had responded to an emergency call in just four minutes, evacuating the hospital which had a total of 177 patients and 15 staff at the time of the fire.
'Windows barred' In daylight, relatives and friends of the dead women, who included patients infected with Aids/HIV, could be seen weeping outside the building on Bolotnikovskaya Street.
The hospital had been slow to raise the alarm after the fire broke out in a second-floor cafeteria, said a spokesman for the Moscow fire brigade. 'Slow reaction'
"Secondly, the hospital personnel worked very badly, they did not take steps to evacuate people in the early stages of the fire," said Yevgeny Bobylyov, the Associated Press news agency reported. A spokesman for the Moscow fire brigade accused hospital staff of being slow to raise the alarm.
However, there were suggestions that staff had been overcome so rapidly by smoke that they had been incapable of taking action. Fire safety officers had called for the hospital's closure
The walls were reportedly covered with plastic, making the fumes especially hazardous. "[They] worked very badly - they did not take steps to evacuate people in the early stages of the fire," Yevgeny Bobylyov was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.
A further problem was the lack of exits. However there were suggestions that staff had been overcome so rapidly by smoke that they had been incapable of taking action.
"It was a very particular building with five storeys and only one exit and bars on the windows because it was a drug treatment hospital," said Irina Andrianova, a spokeswoman for Russia's Emergencies Ministry. Televised footage shows scorched, peeling corridor walls inside the building and beds and personal effects covered in black ash in a room which looked otherwise undamaged.
"Judging by the placement of the bodies, they really tried to get out," said Alexander Chupriyanov, the deputy emergency situations minister. "The fire was relatively small," one rescue official told Itar-Tass news agency.
"Everyone who died as a result of this fire, died before the first fire engines came, and those were at the site four minutes after the call," he told Russia's Itar-Tass news agency. "But there was very thick smoke, and people got poisoned by smoke in their sleep."
Signs of arson Mr Chupriyan said there was evidence of a desperate struggle by patients to escape:
More than 20 fire engines were sent to the site, where they battled the flames and smoke for an hour before bringing the blaze under control. "Judging by the placement of the bodies, they really tried to get out."
"The fire was relatively small, only 100 square metres. But there was very thick smoke, and people got poisoned by smoke in their sleep," one rescue official told Itar-Tass. Safety concerns
Fire inspector Yuri Nenashev said that he was "90%" sure the fire was started deliberately. Fire safety officers visited the hospital in February and March and called for its temporary closure after their second visit, said Russia's chief fire inspector, Yuri Nenashev.
"No technical means such as heaters, wires or such were found... there was only a wooden shelf, which was the fire's centre, and that indicates arson," he said. "Unfortunately this decision was not adopted," he added.
Russia records about 18,000 fire deaths a year, the Associated Press reports, 10 times higher than in the US. Irina Andrianova, a spokeswoman for the emergencies ministry, said the design of the building, with its barred windows and single exit, was "very particular" because it was used to treat drug addicts.
Mr Nenashev said the fire had begun on a wooden shelf, which led him to suspect arson or "extremely careless handling of flammable materials".
Russia records about 18,000 fire deaths a year, AP reports - 10 times more than in the US.
Last December seven people died in a fire at an institute for the mentally ill near Moscow.Last December seven people died in a fire at an institute for the mentally ill near Moscow.
And in 2003 36 students died and some 170 were hurt at a hostel for foreign students.
Have you been affected by the fire? If you have any information you would like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below: 		And in 2003, 36 students died and some 170 were hurt at a hostel for foreign students.
Have you been affected by the fire? If you have any information you would like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below:
You can send pictures or moving footage to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 07725 100 100You can send pictures or moving footage to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 07725 100 100
Click here for terms and conditions on sending photos and video Click here for terms and conditions on sending photos and video
Name:
 Name: