Dozens dead and missing in Siberian mall fire

  • 26/03/2018
At least 37 people have been killed in the blaze.
At least 37 people have been killed in the blaze. Photo credit: Reuters

At least 37 people have been killed with dozens more missing after a fire began in an indoor trampoline park inside a Siberian shopping mall early on Monday (local time).

Local authorities said more than 40 children are among those dead or unaccounted for at the 500sqm Winter Cherry building in Kemerovo.

There was no immediate indication of the fire's cause, but it is believed to have begun in a foam-filled play area inside the trampoline park.

Thirteen bodies were recovered from a cinema in the mall, and others died after jumping from the burning building.

The shopping centre also contains a zoo, where it is expected that all 200 animals died in the blaze.

Zoo director Evgeny Videman told local media it was physically impossible to get the animals out.

"I think they were suffocated and died because I was the last to leave. There were no people left in the zoo."

President Vladimir Putin sent his condolences to the victims of the fire and ordered his emergencies minister to fly to Kemerovo to manage the disaster.

Witnesses reported that no fire alarm went off inside the mall.

Fifteen fire crews and 60 firefighters attended the scene.

Newshub.