“More than 60 people were injured in the fire in Makhachkala, and 12 of them died,” the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry wrote on Telegram. An explosion occurred on Monday August 14 at a gas station in the city of Makhachkala, located on the Caspian Sea, the capital of Dagestan. The fire covers about 600 square meters, the ministry said, adding that 260 firefighters are at work.
A medical Il-76 plane was dispatched to Makhachkala by the Russian authorities to evacuate the seriously injured to Moscow, he added.
The disaster took place at 9:40 p.m. (6:40 p.m. GMT) on a federal road, said the head of the administration of the Republic of Dagestan, Sergey Melikov. “The reasons and type of the explosion are being clarified,” he said on Telegram.
A deadly explosion and fire at a gas station in Makhachkala, Dagestan, where protests against water shortages have been ongoing. At least three people are confirmed killed. https://t.co/rrkVAl1cFe pic.twitter.com/ZrGhaaoVSZ
According to a witness quoted on Telegram by the Russian daily Izvestia, the fire started in an area where cars were parked and spread to the gas station. “After the explosion, everything fell on our heads, we can’t see anything,” said the unnamed witness.
A video posted on Telegram by the Ria Novosti agency shows flames rising from a building, then a gigantic explosion.
