Fire destroys over 1,000 sqm of shopping center in Taldykorgan
According to given information, on 8 January at 12.55 in the afternoon, the Almaty Regional Emergency Situations Department was informed of the fire that engulfed the first, second, and third floors of "Karagash" shopping center in Taldykorgan and spread to the roof.
"It was a 3-floor building (9 meters tall), with brick walls lined with panels of aluminium composite material, with reinforced concrete ceilings, central heating, and electric lighting. The total area of "Karagash" shopping center is 11,699.6 sqm. It had been identified as a high-fire-risk building," explained a representative of the department.
The fire covered a total area of 1,300 square meters. It was isolated by 2:25 pm and extinguished at 2:40 pm; there were no casualties or injuries. 320 people including sellers and visitors were evacuated from the trading house.
53 firefighters and 13 units of special equipment of the Almaty Regional Emergency Department, 70 officers and 10 vehicles of the Regional Interior Department, and 66 officers and 3 vehicles of the National Guard of the Republic of Kazakhstan were extinguishing the fire. In addition, 12 members of the ambulance crew in 3 ambulances, 4 workers and 2 units of the town's water service, 2 workers and 1 unit of "Korkem" State Municipal Management Company were involved.
At present, the cause of the fire, the property loss, and the perpetrators are being established.
According to the Regional Emergency Situations Department, the last fire technical survey of the "Karagash" shopping center was carried out on April 6, 2017. That time, nine fire safety violations were found according to the results of the audit. For the violations, the department held the trading house's administration administratively liable on April 14 last year. As a result of an audit on July 13 last year, no fire safety violations were identified.