Two people were killed in an explosion at the Avangard plant in the Leningrad Region. Reports about it the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
“Two people died, two were hospitalized,” the agency said.
At the same time, the authorities of the Leningrad region denied that among the victims of the explosion in Gatchina was a child, previously published by TASS, citing a source in the security forces.
"According to the information reported from the scene, this is not confirmed, it is a fake," the regional administration press service reports.
Earlier it was also reported that four people could be under the rubble resulting from the explosion. As the representative of the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported on the Russia 24 TV channel, Timur Hikmatov, rescuers recovered two victims.
“According to our data, there are four people under the rubble and, according to the latest operational data, a second person was taken out from under the rubble. Work continues, ”said Hikmatov. He noted that a technological explosion had occurred at the plant without subsequent ignition.
“It happened as a result of work at the plant, it is not a terrorist act,” said a representative of the Emergencies Ministry. At the same time, Timur Hikmatov noted that there is no danger to residential buildings located near the plant where the explosion occurred.
According to the MOE, the explosion caused significant damage to industrial buildings - about 30% of the plant was destroyed.
Later in the network appeared a video published by an eyewitness to the incident. From the author's comments, it follows that poles and fittings are scattered around the building after the explosion, and firecrackers continue to explode.
At the scene of the incident, there are operational investigative teams led by the First Deputy Head of the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Leningrad Region, forensic investigators, and employees of the department for investigating particularly important cases. The governor of the Leningrad Region Alexander Drozdenko also visited the scene.
“An explosion at the pyrotechnics factory in Gatchina, a pre-residential building. Checked into place. Services are alarmed, ”he wrote in his Instagram.
Due to the explosion, the contact network on the railway was damaged. In particular, the railway traffic on the Luga direction is temporarily stopped, one suburban electric train is detained. According to the latest data, the damaged railway infrastructure has been restored, delays in train traffic are not predicted.
Enterprise with a story
The Avangard plant began to produce pyrotechnics as early as 1944. The enterprise is located in the settlement of Small Kolpany, Gatchina District, Leningrad Region.
In the 1960s, it was expanded with the addition of several new structural divisions, and the plant itself was renamed the Gatchina Metalware Plant. Since 2002, the company received the name "Avangard". Today, it employs more than 700 people.
In addition to pyrotechnics, the plant produces camping furniture and metal curtain rods. Among the pyrotechnic products of the plant are firecrackers, Bengal candles, sets of toys, confetti and serpentines. According to the information from the official website of the company, all manufactured products have all the necessary certificates and licenses.
As reported on the website of the Main Investigation Department of the UK in the Leningrad region, investigators opened a criminal case on the fact of the explosion
“The investigating authorities of the Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation in the Leningrad Region initiated a criminal case on the grounds of a crime under Part 2 of Art. 217 of the Criminal Code ("Violation of the rules
safety on explosive objects, which entailed by negligence the death of a person ”),” the message says.