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Psychiatric Hospital fire in Russia near Moscow 38 dead / Russia News

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At least 38 people have been killed in a fire at a psychiatric hospital on the outskirts of Moscow that housed as many as 41 people, including medical staff.

The blaze broke out in the hospital in the town of Ramenskoye, around 70 miles (120 km) east of Moscow, at around 2.20am local time.

When firefighters arrived at the scene, the entire one-storey building was engulfed in flames, reports said.

There were believed to have been 41 people in the building when the fire broke out – 36 patients, two doctors and three nurses. Only one nurse and two patients are thought to have escaped the building.

Twelve bodies have so far been recovered and the fire has been extinguished, authorities said.

“According to preliminary reports, 38 people were killed, including two medical staff,” said health ministry spokesman Oleg Salagai.

There were bars on the windows of the building and some patients apparently died while trying frantically to make it to the main entrance to escape, but many others died in their beds, the Itar-Tass news agency reported.

Fire at mental hospital

The fire started around 2:30 am Moscow Time (22:30 GMT) in Psychiatric Hospital 14 in Ramenskoe in a wing for special treatment patients. By the time fire rescue arrived, the entire one-story building was engulfed in flames. The fire burned an area of about 420 square meters.

One nurse managed to escape the blaze, bringing two patients out of the building to safety, where they were found by firefighters.

The nurse told reporters that she was woken up by the fire alarm, and ran into the hallway where she saw a chair burning. She remembers seeing a flash.

State news agency RIA Novosti quoted police as saying the fire is believed to have been caused by an electrical short-circuit.

Emergency services said the patients ranged in age from 20 to 76.

Russia-Map-Moscow-Region

Health Ministry officials said it took firefighters an hour to get to the hospital because a local ferry across the river was closed and they were forced to make a detour.

Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyev told state television the fire alarm appeared to have worked, but the fire spread too quickly after igniting in a wooden annex.

Dmitry Pestov, deputy head of the Moscow region, added: “Fire safety watchdogs constantly check all (public) institutions and issue recommendations.

“As far as I know, all the recommendations had been followed. There are different versions, including arson and a short circuit. They will be checked.”

Fires at state institutions in Russia such as hospitals, drug treatment centres and homes for the elderly have caused numerous casualties in recent years and raised questions about safety measures and conditions.

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