Criminal investigation launched after horrific fire in Almaty residential building
«There was a fire resistant stairway, but at the same time there should have been self-closing doors and a closer on the doors. There was no closer, and all the smoke from smoke-filled 5th and 6th floors moved to the emergency stairway,» acting chief of the Emergencies Department Yerlan Alibekov says.
According to him, the fire escape holes in the balconies were blocked by the occupants. «If they were open, the occupants living above the 5th floor would have moved down by the stairs connecting these emergency holes and the firefighters could have evacuated them from the 5th floor,» he added.
The Prosecutor’s Office of the city has set up an interdepartmental commission to investigate into the incident. A number of criminal cases was launched. The causes of the fire are being investigated, Alibekov noted.
The fire in the 16-storey building in Almaty killed one and injured 43 people.
12 adults were rushed to the municipal hospitals. Five of them were hospitalized, others were discharged after receiving emergency care and treatment. A woman died of multiple fatal injuries. Some occupants received treatment on the scene.
Mayor of the city Yerbolat Dossayev expressed his condolences to the family of the woman killed in the fire.
