Roof Collapses on Russian Rail Car Repair Facility

Forty-one workers escaped without major injury Friday afternoon when the roof of a railroad car repair building in south central Russia collapsed without warning, local authorities report.

A 2,400-square-meter section of roof collapsed at the Novotrans’ Kuzbass Car Repair Plant in Prokopyevsk.

“The main blow fell on the cars,” a city government website reports. “The people were in another part of the workshop.”

All the workers evacuated the building on their own with the worst injury reported being a split eyebrow. The Russian Emergencies Ministry responded to the scene with 11 pieces of equipment and 35 personnel.

A special commission will be established to investigate the cause of the collapse, authorities said. Meanwhile, Novotrans has committed to rebuilding the damaged structure with work temporarily redirected to other facilities.