Shooting and Explosion Tragedy at Moscow Concert Hall: Updates on Deaths and Injuries

2024-03-22 18:42:18
Shooting and explosion at a concert hall in Moscow: several dead and injured reported

An explosion and shooting took place this Friday at the Crocus City Hall concert hall, in Krasnogorsk, on the outskirts of the Russian capital, Moscow, leaving several people injured. Videos shared on social networks show people who were enjoying a show by the group Piknik fleeing the room, as well as a dense cloud of black smoke coming out of the site and the collapse of the roof of the site was also reported. The TASS agency even said that a third of the building is on fire.

Disseminated images show three people dressed in camouflage clothing, breaking into the place and opening fire indiscriminately inside the room using automatic rifles. Other videos show the bodies lying on the ground among blood stains. However, emergency services could not yet determine if there were more attackers, so up to five shooters are considered.

At the moment, the evacuation and evaluation of the building is being carried out, where it is estimated that there are about 100 people trapped, many of them on the roof, from where they are screaming for help.

Governor Andrei Vorobiov is already at the scene and announced the creation of a special work unit, which includes members of the National Guard’s Special Rapid Response Squadron and riot police, to control the situation. The imminent arrival of firefighters is also expected to put out the flames and more than 70 ambulances are already working.

Shooting And Explosion At A Concert Hall In Moscow – Several Dead And Injured Reported

For his part, the mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobyanin, stated that “a terrible tragedy occurred. My deepest condolences to the loved ones of the victims. I gave orders to provide all necessary assistance to all those who suffered during the incident,” while Ombudsman Tatiana Moskalkova called it a “terrorist attack.” The Ministry of Foreign Affairs even asked the entire international community to condemn this fact.

The White House regretted this episode and said it was a “terrible” event. “The images are just horrible and hard to look at. Our thoughts will be with the victims of this terrible shooting attack. There are some mothers, fathers, siblings and children who have not yet received the news. It’s going to be a tough day,” said National Security Advisor John Kirby. The local UK Embassy later extended its deepest condolences.

The Crocus City Hall has capacity for about 6,000 people, although it has not yet been revealed how many people were present at this concert.

This episode occurred after, at the beginning of the month, the United States Embassy in Russia issued a statement in which it called on its nationals in the country to avoid crowded places in the capital due to the imminence of an attack. The warning was later replicated by other embassies. Putin had considered these ads “an attempt to intimidate and destabilize our society.”

So far, however, there has been no claim of responsibility for what is already the worst terrorist attack in Russia in two decades.

News in development…

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