Heating pipe bursts in Russian hotel, boiling water kills 5

In this image made from video provided by Russian Emergency Situations Ministry press service, shows a view of a damaged hotel of nine rooms located in the basement of a residential building which was flooded with boiling water after a pipe ruptured in Perm, Russia, Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. Russian emergency services say heating pipe damage caused deaths and injuries. (Ministry of Emergency Situations press service via AP)

MOSCOW — A heating pipe burst Monday in a small Russian hotel, flooding rooms with boiling water that killed five people and left six others injured in the city of Perm, emergency officials said.

The hotel of nine rooms was located in the basement of a residential building in the city near Russia’s Ural Mountains. All of the victims — which included a child — were staying at the hotel, authorities said. Three of the injured were hospitalized with burns.

Russian police have opened a probe into the tragedy.

Given the deaths, the Russian parliament might consider a ban on opening hotels or hostels in the basements of residential buildings, lawmaker Oleg Melnichenko said.

“Hostels shouldn’t be open in basements, where all pipelines are located,” Melnichenko said.

Last year, the Russian parliament banned opening hostels or hotel rooms in apartments in residential buildings.