The Owner and the manager of a nightclub in Russia's Urals city of Perm where a fire killed over 100 people have been detained, the investigation authorities said Saturday.
The fire engulfed the "Lame Horse" club at about 11:15 p.m. Moscow time Friday (2015 GMT Friday) during an indoor fireworks display held to celebrate the venue's eighth anniversary, which were ignited presumably without permission.
The club's owner, Anatoly Zak, and manager Svetlana Yefremova, have been arrested on charges of causing loss of lives by breaking fire-safety
regulations, Vladimir Markin, a spokesman for the Investigative Committee of the Prosecutor General's Office, was quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency as saying, adding that they could face jail terms of seven years.
The flame has claimed at least 102 lives, and the 131 others injured in the disaster were transferred to Moscow and will be treated in the capital's best hospitals, said the Emergency Situations Ministry.
It is reported that most of the victims died of burns and carbon monoxide poisoning. "In addition, a stampede occurred at the exit," Markin said.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev early Saturday ordered Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu and
Prosecutor-General Yuri Chaika to investigate the cause of the blast.
The authorities ruled out terrorist acts as a possible cause of the incident, saying bomb experts found no evidence of explosive devices.
Meanwhile, the regional government announced that the families of the victims would receive 100,000 rubles (about 3,400 U.S. dollars) in
compensation.