At Least 23 Russians Killed After Barracks Collapse (+Video)

Twenty-three Russian soldiers have been killed after their military barracks collapsed in the Siberian city of Omsk, a Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said on July 13.

All four floors collapsed in one section of the building on the evening of July 12 as 42 Russian paratroopers were resting.

Igor Konashenkov said, "all 42 soldiers who were under the rubble have been found. Twenty-three of them are dead."

According to Russian media reports, most of the victims were male and aged between 18 and 24.

Some of the injured victims were airlifted for treatment in Moscow.

Teams of rescue workers, search dogs, and a plane with medical equipment from Moscow have been dispatched to the scene, located about 2,200 kilometers east of Moscow.

The cause of the collapse was not immediately clear.

The Interfax news agency quoted a representative of the regional military investigators as saying a probe had been launched into possible negligence.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu interrupted a vacation and went to Russia's defense coordination center in Moscow to monitor the situation, the ministry said.

Source: rferl.org