One killed in huge blaze at retailer Ozon's warehouse near Moscow - RIA (updated)

Ozon Holdings

03/08/2022 14:54

(Recasts headline and lead, adds Ozon comment)
    MOSCOW, Aug 3 (Reuters) - At least one person was killed and
13 injured when a huge fire broke out at a warehouse north west
of Moscow owned by e-commerce firm Ozon  OZON.O  on Wednesday,
RIA quoted the emergency services as saying.
    Dozens of firefighters battled to douse the fire using
helicopters and 100 tonnes of water as a large plume of dark
smoke billowed from the roof of the bright blue warehouse.
    RIA reported that the emergency services were considering
arson as the likeliest cause of the fire at the warehouse near
the settlement of Istra.  
    Ozon said all employees had been safely evacuated from the
warehouse and that none had been injured. The fire broke out in
a standalone block at its fulfilment centre, Ozon said, a site
that holds and processes thousands of goods slated for delivery.
    The emergencies ministry said the fire had spread to an area
of 35,000 square metres. A fire-pumping station, an Mi-8
helicopter, two Ka-32 helicopters, 150 firefighters and 40 other
pieces of equipment were deployed to the scene, it said. 
    Ozon said it had removed the goods in the warehouse from its
online marketplace. 
    "Customers will be refunded for lost orders," Ozon said in a
statement. "Sellers will receive compensation for damaged or
lost goods."
    Nasdaq-listed Ozon is one of Russia's largest e-commerce
players. It was not immediately clear what value or number of
goods were affected.
    Ozon's Moscow-listed depositary receipts  OZONDR.MM  were up
0.4% at 1349 GMT after earlier slipping to a near two-week low. 

 (Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Alexander Smith)