The warehouse of a large online shop in St. Petersburg is on fire. The fire is spreading rapidly and images show an unrealistically large cloud of smoke.
Update from January 13th, 10:47 p.m.: The situation in Saint Petersburg is probably under control for the time being thanks to the numerous emergency services. However, according to media reports, the major fire in the warehouse of the wholesaler Wildberries caused damage worth three-digit millions.
Meanwhile, there are a number of posts about the incident on social media. According to this, there is repeated talk of employees who were only allowed to go outside after a body search. They were accused of theft, they say. This accusation cannot be independently verified. There are also other videos circulating under the hashtag “#RussiaOnFire” of fires that are said to have occurred in Russia on Saturday (January 13). Some suspect arson as a form of protest against the war in Ukraine.
Major fire in Russia: Cause raises questions
Update from January 13th, 6:15 p.m.: A huge cloud of smoke engulfed Russia's second largest city after a major fire broke out in a warehouse. According to Russian media reports, the fire at the online retailer Wildberries is now under control and firefighters were able to prevent it from spreading to other buildings. But behind the facade it continues to smolder – critics of Russia suspect arson.
According to initial investigations, the cause of the fire was “a fault in the electrical wiring,” according to the state Russian news agency Tass quoted a company spokesman as saying. However, insiders previously told foreign media that it was arson. This suggests that the fire alarm was switched off shortly beforehand. The company attributes this to repeated false alarms, so the detector was deliberately taken out of operation, Tass says.
Major fire in Russia's megacity St. Petersburg raises questions – was it arson?
Theories are circulating on social media that sabotage could be behind the fire. Accordingly, investigators from the Russian army are said to have visited the online wholesaler's premises a few days earlier and checked work permit papers. Igor Sushko, a Ukrainian-born American, wrote on X (formerly Twitter), that in the wake of the major fire, “mass employees were arrested and sent to fight in Ukraine.” This cannot be verified independently. Sushko is considered a critic of Russia.
Major fire in Russia: Gigantic cloud of smoke engulfs St. Petersburg
First report from January 13th, 3:39 p.m.: St. Petersburg – Huge fire in St. Petersburg, the second largest city Russia. The fire brigade can hardly fight the high flames and a monstrous cloud of smoke settles over the city.
A warehouse belonging to the online retailer Wildberries went up in flames on Saturday (January 13th). The Russian company is comparable to Amazon and stores a wide variety of products in the hall. The cause of the fire is still unclear.
Fire in St. Petersburg: warehouse of online retailer Wildberries caught fire
The fire is spreading rapidly and by the afternoon 70,000 square meters had already been affected, the Russian civil protection agency said. Russian media are already talking about damage of 10 to 11 billion rubles (around 114 million euros).
Pictures of the gigantic cloud of smoke are going viral online. Parts of the city are said to be completely dark. Anton Gerashenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, posted photos and videos on X (Twitter). He writes: “The entire south of St. Petersburg is covered in unimaginable smoke from the Wilberries warehouse fire.”
Pictures of a cloud of smoke go viral: “The entire south of St. Petersburg is covered in unimaginable smoke”
Is arson behind the major fire? An unnamed source told the RBC news portal that investigator
s were considering a criminal. There is no evidence of this yet.
Apparently no injuries in the warehouse in St. Petersburg
At least: Apparently no one was injured in the warehouse. Wildberries said via Telegram that everyone who was in the building had been brought to safety.
A similar incident occurred in Berlin in August last year. A major fire broke out in a warehouse and a huge cloud of smoke billowed over the city. However, only 5,000 square meters were affected. (moe)
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