Moscow, August 21: The death toll in the Russia’s power plant disaster may rise to 75 with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin saying that 49 people listed as missing after the accident should be considered dead.
Putin today paid a visit to Russia’s largest hydroelectric power plant to personally supervise the rescue work.
“There’s no need to pretend that there’s something unclear about this to someone,” Putin said on television as he announced compensation for families of the victims of Monday’s disaster at the plant in Siberia.
“Families both of the dead and the missing will receive compensation of USD 31,000 from the federal budget,” Putin added.
On Monday a powerful explosion in the Sayano-Shushenskoe hydroelectric power led to the flooding of the turbine room, 450 staff were on duty at the time of accident.
Putin had yesterday said that the accident highlighted the need for upgrading critical parts of Russia’s aging infrastructure.
He also highlighted the necessity of observing industrial safety standards.
“In our country…………discipline in dealing with technology is very low,” he had said.
—PTI