RUSSIAN NIGHTCLUB FIRE KILLS 109

DEATHTOLL IN RUSSIAN NIGHTCLUB FIRE REACHES 109
WHILE MANY INJURED REMAIN IN CRITICAL CONDITION

MOSCOW (RIA Novosti) - Panicked clubgoers crushed each other to death in a popular Russian nightspot as they tried to flee a fast-moving fire that one eyewitness told was started by pyrotechnic fountains set up on the stage. Officials said 109 people died when the fire tore through the popular Lame Horse nightclub in the city of Perm late Friday, filling the crowded barracks-like building with thick black smoke. Authorities said they arrested the registered owner of the club and the manager. Officials said the club managers ignored repeated demands from authorities to change the club's interior to comply with fire safety standards. A video run by Russian television stations showed flames engulfing the ceiling decorated with willow twigs as a host shouted in a casual tone: "Ladies and Gentlemen, guests of the club, we are on fire. Please leave the hall!". People reluctantly and slowly began heading toward the exit, some of them turning back to look at the burning ceiling, but then rushed away in panic as flames quickly spread around seconds later. The victims crushed each other to death and suffocated after the fire tore through the popular Lame Horse nightclub.

In a couple of minutes, the fire filled the crowded barracks-like building with thick black smoke. Officials said most of the dead suffocated or were crushed at the exit. Ambulances delivered some of the more than 130 injured to planes waiting at the airport, where they were being evacuated to Moscow hospitals. Medical authortities said nearly 90 of the injured were in critical condition. "They have neither brains, nor conscience," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said, urging a tough punishment for the culprits. Medvedev has accused the management of the nightclub and called for harsh punishments.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US?

The unfortunate man, falling a victim to evil influences of the sense-ridden ego, may revolt against his own Lord … he may conquer worlds, he may be the architect of nations, he may build vast empires or he may do many other wonders which no ordinary man can ever even imagine; yet he is utterly helpless in crossing this unfathomable ocean of worldliness. At every moment, he is being violently tossed by the roaring waves of this ocean of never-ending sufferings. All his false hopes are frustrated, his confidence in the efficacy of his own actions betrays him finally. He sees all around him threatening temptations, horrors and sweeping currents of cares, calamities, anxieties, and worries.

Śrīla Bhakti Vaibhava Purī Mahārāj:
"Guru and Atma Nivedan" - 'The Act of Submission'
Śrī Krishna Chaitanya Mission.