There is no half of the house!: in Novosibirsk, the entrance of a five-story building collapsed during a gas explosion

A fire started after the explosion. Rescuers evacuated 50 residents, who were temporarily placed in a nearby lyceum. There are victims.

At about 8 am local time, a powerful explosion was heard on Lineinaya Street in the Zaeltsovsky district. The shock wave blew the interfloor floors of the house. The third entrance of the five-story building collapsed, in which there were 15 apartments.

The governor of the region Andrey Travnikov reported about the incident in his Telegram channel. Later, another post appeared in which the head of the region wrote about the increased number of victims - at the moment, two dead are known. The regional Ministry of Health also reports six victims.

The explosion was heard by residents of nearby areas, and a column of smoke from the fire is visible from afar.

The head of the region announced that all necessary rescue operations were launched. At the site of the emergency there are ambulance teams of the region and disaster medicine. All hospitals in the city are ready to receive the victims.

Mash reports that over the past day, residents of the house complained twice about the strong smell of gas, and their attention was also attracted by suspicious people who, under the guise of an emergency service, tried to enter the house, allegedly for "checking and eliminating." It is not clear whether these were real specialists who were not allowed into the apartments by the tenants or numerous representatives of unofficial offices allegedly checking gas meters. The fact that the house smells of gas was also reported today by a resident of the second entrance. Literally a few minutes before the explosion.

According to the Interfax agency, an application from the residents of the house to eliminate the gas leak was recorded, and specialists went to the place. However, either the work was carried out untimely or not in full. The prosecutor's office of the Novosibirsk region initiated an investigation in connection with this incident.

The preliminary cause that led to the tragedy is a gas leak. Other versions are being considered. In particular, a malfunction of the gas equipment.

Social media users are posting photos and videos from the scene of the tragedy.