This archive report was first published on 11 July 2019.
On July 11, 2019, a massive fire ravaged Power Station No. 27, located approximately 20 kilometers outside Moscow, sending a plume of smoke and flames 50 meters into the sky.
A female employee tragically lost her life in the blaze, according to Russia's emergencies ministry.
Fourteen people received medical treatment, with one being hospitalized.
The fire, which began around 11:00 am local time, took approximately five hours to extinguish.
Emergency services deployed helicopters to drop water and fire-fighting trains to combat the blaze, with over 160 firefighters on the scene.
Witnesses described the scene as apocalyptic, with one resident, Sofiya Fesenko, recounting that hot water flowed from cold taps after the fire.
"We saw smoke covering half the sky," she said.
Investigators attributed the cause of the fire to a leak from a high-pressure gas pipe, which sparked a small explosion before the blaze erupted.
The power station, built in 1996, supplies part of Moscow and the surrounding region with electricity, centralised hot water, and heating.
