A fire at a petrol station in the southern Russian region of Dagestan has killed at least 30 people including three children, Russia’s emergency services ministry said on Tuesday.
The fire started at a car repair shop beside a main road in the Dagestani capital, Makhachkala, and caused explosions as it spread to the nearby filling station, officials said. “It’s like a war here,” a witness said.
Images shared by the emergency services ministry showed firefighters trying to put out a huge blaze as flames rose high in the night sky. Footage posted online showed a one-storey building on fire, Reuters TV reported.
Dagestan is a Russian republic bordering Chechnya and shares a border with Georgia and Azerbaijan.
The ministry said on Telegram: “During the rescue operation in Makhachkala, the bodies of three more victims were found.
“According to the updated information, as a result of the fire at the petrol station 105 were injured, and of them, 30 died.”
Some of those injured will be airlifted to Moscow for treatment, according to the report.
Russian authorities have begun a criminal investigation.
Families of the victims will receive 1 million roubles (about £8,200) each, Dagestan’s authorities said. Those injured will receive 200,000-400,000 roubles.
A day of mourning was declared in Dagestan on Tuesday.
In western Siberia, another blast killed two people and wounded five on Monday night. The explosion occurred at an oil mine in the Khanty-Mansiysk region late in the evening, local authorities said.
Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report
