38 feared dead in Moscow psychiatric hospital fire

Many are feared dead after a blaze broke out at a psychiatric hospital in Russia

By Nicole Hamer |

11:30 26 April 2013

A fire has spread through a psychiatric hospital which is based in an area in Moscow, Russia. Now there are fears that at least 38 people have lost their lives as a result of the blaze, officials have been reported as saying.

It is believed that many of those feared dead are patients, who are understood to be at the No 14 psychiatric hospital which is in the village of Ramenskiy. A number of staff were also in the building when the fire broke out.

The fire apparently started early in the morning, at 2am local time (10pm GMT, Thursday, 25th April).

The fire department attended the scene and managed to control the fire by putting it out.

It is uncertain what caused the blaze as of time of press, although there are rumours that it is thought it may have begun because of an electrical fault.

Moscow, which is the capital of Russia, is located on the Moskva River. The city has a number of international airports as well as rail and underground metro services.

The capital city is situated in the west of Russia. Russia is also known as the Russian Federation.