Moscow factory fire: 3 killed

Moscow factory fire: 3 killed

A fire broke out at a furniture factory in northern Moscow early Wednesday, killing at least three people, a city emergency official said.

The blaze erupted around 7:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) in a four-story building at the factory and burnt through several administrative offices, a duty officer with the Moscow city fire department said.

Firefighters found three bodies in one part of the building, apparently asphyxiated by smoke. Another five people had to be rescued, the officer said.

Russia records about 18,000 fire deaths a year, roughly 10 times the rate in the United States and 12.5 times higher than in Britain, due in part to lax enforcement of regulations and shoddy construction, reports the AP.

I.L.