13 dead in Russian nightclub fire after serviceman fires flare gun on dancefloor

13 people have died and a further 60 have been injured after a fire at a nightclub in the Russian city of Kostroma on Saturday November 5.

The fire is believed to have started after a man let off a flare gun on the dancefloor of Polygon Club around 2:30AM. It then reportedly spread after the lighting rig caught fire, with the room filling with smoke.

A 23-year-old suspect, reported to have been a serviceman by The Mirror, has been arrested and is currently being detained by police.

250 people were evacuated from the premises, and an investigation has been launched into the venue, after it was found that a number of evacuation exits were blocked or inaccessible according to a report Reuters.

Russia’s TASS news agency has confirmed that 13 people have died, with a further 60 injured — four of which are hospitalised with life threatening injuries.

The fire covered an area of 3,500 sqm and took five hours to put out, as well as causing a ceiling of the nightclub to collapse.

Andrei Kuzmin, who was inside the nightclub said: “When the fight started they switched on the lights, there was a pop and there was instant smoke,” according to The Mirror.

“There were a lot of people in the place because it was very popular,” he continued. “At a rough guess there were about 300 people, because everything was packed, both the bar and the dance floor, and the tables were all taken.”

Videos posted online shows smoke rising from the ceiling. People can be heard shouting while firefighters attempt to tackle the blaze.

Kostroma is a city in the Oblast region of Russia, around 210 miles north of Moscow and has a population of around 270,000.

Local officials in the city declared Monday, November 7 a day of mourning.

Isaac Muk is Mixmag’s Digital Intern, follow him on Twitter