Moscow yesterday suffered its worst fire in decades when a gas pipeline blast sent flames bursting into the sky and raised new concerns about the security of Russia’s aging energy infrastructure.
The fire produced spectacular plumes of yellow flames reaching 200m high and huge clouds billowing smoke were visible against the night sky, television pictures showed.
Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, who rushed to the scene, said that five people were injured in the fire, including a man who received burns over 35 percent of his body, but there were no fatalities.
The cause of the fire was almost certainly technical in nature, he said.
“In my opinion — 99 percent sure — this was a technical catastrophe. This all still needs to be investigated,” he said in comments on state television. “The cause could have been an upsurge of pressure in the pipeline.”
“I don’t remember there ever being a fire like this in Moscow,” Moscow Deputy Mayor Petr Birukov said, while Interfax quoted other officials as saying it was the worst in two decades.
The fire broke out at 12:30am. By the morning, the blaze had been brought under control and the flames reduced from 200m to 20m. By the afternoon it had been virtually extinguished, officials said.
The emergencies ministry said the fire was a category 5 on its scale, the most serious level. It said that 35 fire brigade units had been sent to the scene.
Authorities halted all traffic in the immediate area around the fire close to Michurinsky Avenue, a key artery that leads towards the Moscow River in the center of the city.
There was no threat to nearby apartment blocks, with the nearest building an administrative building 200m away. Two dozen parked cars were damaged but no one was inside them at the time.
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