The liquidation lasted more than 16 hours: in Kharkiv, the fire at the “Epicenter” was finally put out

In the afternoon of May 25, the Russians hit Kharkiv’s “Epicenter” with UMPB D-30 ammunition. A powerful fire broke out – in the hypermarket paint and paint products, wood, and the lining of the store and the goods that were located inside caught fire.

It is noted that there were up to 200 people in “Epicenter” at the time of the attack. About half managed to respond to the air raid signal. That is, approximately 100 people were in the building at the time of the impact.

As of the evening, 17 people were considered missing. These are both store visitors and employees, in particular, a sales manager in the varnish and paint department, a senior seller, and a promoter. By morning, the number of dead had doubled.

Prosecutors removed servers from surveillance cameras from the hypermarket to establish the exact number of citizens who were inside the building at the time of the attack.

The fire has been extinguished

The head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko, said that the liquidation of the fire in Kharkiv’s “Epicenter” lasted more than 16 hours. The fire spread to more than 13 thousand square meters. Thanks to continuous heroic work of rescuers, the fire was completely extinguished.

Russian shelling killed 12 people and injured 43 more. 16 people are considered missing, Klymenko said.

At the same time, the minister noted. that the headquarters of the police investigation department and the forensic laboratory are working at the scene of the tragedy. Biological samples have already been taken from 10 people who are likely to be relatives of the victims. As of this morning, it was possible to identify the three dead. Work continues.

Klymenko noted that anyone who has lost contact with loved ones can contact the staff of the investigation department. He urged first-line relatives to submit DNA samples to speed up the identification process.