23 killed in collapse of Russian military barracks in Siberia

The building of a major Russian military training barracks near the Siberian city of Omsk has partially collapsed, leaving at least 23 people dead, according to the country’s defense ministry.

The roof of military barracks for the 242nd Training Center of the Airborne Forces in the village of Svetliy on the outskirts of Omsk collapsed Sunday evening burying scores of people under the rubble.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the bodies of 23 missing people had been found under the debris by late morning and called off the search. It added that 19 people had been injured.

Ten gravely injured people have been sent to Moscow for treatment.

“Three-hundred and thirty-seven servicemen were inside the building at the moment of the tragedy. Thirty-eight were buried under the debris,” said the ministry’s press-service as quoted by TASS.

There were, however, no signs of an explosion or fire in the partial caving-in of the compound’s roof, the report added, citing a police source.

This is while a special Russian Defense Ministry commission has been dispatched to the military barracks to probe the incident.

Additionally, more than 150 soldiers along with 21 units of heavy machinery have been deployed to the site to assist with rescue operations.

Civilian medical crews are also heading to the scene from Moscow to assist the local military medics with rescue and treatment efforts.

Preliminary information about the incident indicates that the building collapse came as a result of structural code violations during repair work on the compound.

Following the incident, meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu issued an order for the inspection of all military facilities in Omsk.