ICRF voices out reason of "Electrozinc" fire

According to preliminary data of the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF), the fire that occurred at the "Electrozinc" Factory in Vladikavkaz was a result of violations of the industrial safety regulations, investigators have stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the fire in one of the shops of the "Electrozinc" Metallurgical Factory in Vladikavkaz occurred at night on October 21. During extinguishing the fire, an employee of the Ministry for Emergencies (MfE) perished; and two others were injured.

"The results of inspecting the venue, recording of surveillance cameras installed in the shop, and explanations of eyewitnesses suggest that there have been violations of industrial safety at a hazardous production facility, which caused the fire," the ICRF has stated.

After the fire, the work of the factory was suspended. On October 22, residents of the city went to a spontaneous action demanding to close the facility; the rally continued on the following day. Its participants accused the authorities of silencing the problems with the release of harmful substances from the factory during the fire and complained of their poor health. Many residents of Vladikavkaz are under stress because of the poor ecology around and the recent fire at the "Electrozinc" Factory Alina Tochikova, a psychologist, has noted.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on October 24, 2018 at 10:06 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.