At least 16 migrant workers die in Moscow warehouse fire

Printing works warehouse fired at 8 am local time. The workers are said to have been from Kyrgyzstan and were trapped in a room by the fire, which broke out on the fourth floor of a printing company.

The victims were migrant workers who lived in the building, it is understood. “It is very hard for us”, Abdygany Shakirov, a representative for the Kyrgyz community in Russian Federation, told Reuters.

He recalled that at least sixteen people were in the changing room, which had only one exit. “It is very hard for us”, Abdygany Shakirov, the Kyrgyz representative, told media outlets.

Around 500,000 citizens of the impoverished former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan are working in Russian Federation.

He said the incident was provoked by a lamp that broke in a room containing a large amount of flammable materials and paper items.

“I am certain that those guilty will be found and punished”, Sobyanin wrote.

“There was a fire at the warehouse at the industrial area [located] on Altufyevskoe roadway”.

Moscow’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said the city would open a criminal investigation to determine if the blaze was started due to negligence or arson.