The fire in Crocus City Hall after the terrorist attack: the reasons why it burned down so quickly

The materials with which the walls of the Crocus City Hall concert hall near Moscow were decorated could have contributed to the development of the fire when terrorists fired at people. This assumption was expressed by law enforcement agencies.

According to the informant, the flammable materials from which the walls of the hall were made are highly toxic when burned and emit large amounts of toxic smoke. He added that all data and certificates of conformity are now being analyzed.

The victims demanded to start a case against the owners of Crocus

According to the recollections of eyewitnesses who escaped from the hall, after the arson, the fire almost immediately engulfed the walls. The lawyer for the victims of the terrorist attack filed an application with the Investigative Committee of Russia so that a case could be opened against the owners of the complex. According to the applicants, the building did not have fire protection systems or laser sensors.

The concert hall was designed in the late 1990s and built much later. Since then, security requirements have changed significantly, which were allegedly not met by the owner of the center, Araz Agalarov. According to the injured party, he did not invest in ensuring security, as a result of which he is responsible for grave consequences.

At the time of the shooting, the doors of the Crocus were locked

After the terrorist attack, some of the surviving visitors also reported that some doors in the concert hall were locked, which is why people could not leave the building for a long time or fell into a trap.

In particular, one of the victims said that he found an ax and that was the only way he was able to break down several doors. The Russians also noted that they had to break down doors locked with bicycle locks to get onto the fire escapes. In addition, the exits to the roof, which should be provided by the Anti-panic system, did not work, as a result of which people could not escape from the burning building. Eyewitnesses also spoke about blocked basement doors.

Investigators are currently checking whether people were able to leave the concert hall using additional exits.

Terrorists entered Crocus the evening before the concert on March 22

That evening, four people broke into Crocus before the start of the Picnic concert. Shooting began in the building, after which the terrorists set fire to the concert hall. Subsequently, the shooters fled in a car, but they were detained in the Bryansk region.

As is already known, the perpetrators of the terrorist attack were four natives of Tajikistan. They are currently under arrest.

According to the latest data, 695 people were injured in the terrorist attack. The Moscow Region Emergency Situations Department reported that there were also 15 children among the victims. 144 people became victims of the terrorist attack, 5 of them minors.