Eight people died in a blaze in a 15-story hostel in Moscow overnight after a fire alarm malfunctioned, officials said July 29.
The fire erupted in the building in a southeastern district, an agency investigating criminal acts said, adding that four people were hospitalized.
Emergency services said the blaze broke out on the ground floor of the building, adding that the flames were doused soon after midnight and that more than 200 people were evacuated.
All those who died in the fire were migrants, TASS news agency quoted a senior emergency official as saying. Their citizenship is currently in the process of being established.
The senior emergency official told TASS that a fire alarm malfunctioned and that the people inside were trapped as all the windows had metal bars.
A criminal negligence case has been opened.
Fires occur quite often in Russian buildings because of poor maintenance, infrastructure, or negligence.