- Explosions are heard inside the building as 100 firefighters battle to rescue the victims.
- WARNING: CONTAINS GRAPHIC CONTENT
An inferno has raged through what is believed to be a top-secret research center in Russia, with horrifying footage showing people jumping and falling from the burning building.
Reports citing emergency services say at least eight people died in the fire-ravaged skyscraper.
Russian media reports that one man jumped and another fell to his death from the eight-story block, while Shot media reported that up to four had jumped from high windows.
One of the men who fell had already suffered horrible burns. The fate of the others was not immediately clear.
Explosions were heard inside the burning block as 100 firefighters battled to rescue people trapped inside the building, which is located in Fryazino, near Moscow.
The building is believed to house the Platan Research Institute, which develops radio-electronic systems used by Russia’s Defense Ministry to jam signals, Newsweek reports.
Black smoke rises into the sky above the high-rise building in Fryazino, near Moscow.
Disturbing footage shows people on building window sill before jumping
Firefighters work to put out a large fire in a high-rise building in the town of Fryazino, Moscow Region.
The building was consumed by flames and firefighters struggled to control the fire.
The fire had reportedly spread to 43,000 square feet, destroying the large building.
Passersby watched helplessly as smoke billowed from the high-rise building.
Chilling images appear to show workers looking helplessly through a broken window
Fire and smoke rise from a burning administrative building in Fryázino, Moscow Region
However, Russia’s state electronics holding company reported that the building has no connection with the Platan Research Institute or the defense industry, stating that “in the late 90s it became private property.”
One theory behind what caused the fire is that gas cylinders inside the scientific institute exploded, although the cause of the fire has not yet been confirmed.
Heartbreaking footage showed people struggling to escape the smoke and fire, with victims seen emerging before throwing themselves from the building in an attempt to escape.
Chilling images also appeared to show workers looking helplessly through a broken window as they waited to be rescued.
The fire had reportedly spread to 43,000 square feet, destroying the massive building.
It was unclear why there was such a slow response when fire helicopters were used to flood the building with water.
Russia has suffered an extraordinary variety of fires this year amid the war in Ukraine.
Last year, a major fire burned down an online shopping warehouse in St. Petersburg used as a place to recruit migrant workers for Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
In another incident in March, a large fire devastated an engine factory.
