Fire at Elastik plant in Ryazan region kills 11, injures 130

A fire at a Russian industrial plant in the Ryazan region has left 11 people dead and 130 injured, with emergency crews continuing to sift through debris for additional victims as the investigation begins. The blaze, which erupted on Friday at the Elastik plant in the Shilovsky District about 250 kilometers southeast of Moscow, appeared to have started in a gunpowder workshop and sparked a powerful blast. By Saturday, two more bodies had been recovered, and authorities said 29 of the injured remained in local hospitals while 16 were treated in Moscow.

As rescue operations stretched into the weekend, three people were pulled from under the rubble overnight, and investigators opened a preliminary inquiry into the fire’s cause. Regional officials announced a day of mourning for Monday, with plans to lower flags across the region and to suspend or cancel cultural and entertainment events to honor those affected. The governor of Ryazan, Pavel Malkov, noted in an official message that the region would observe the mourning period, underscoring the impact of the tragedy on a community already familiar with industrial accidents.

Hospital authorities reported the distribution of the...