Russian Antarctic Comm Station Burns

The Russian "Progress" research station in Antarctica has experienced a fatal fire in one of its buildings. Word of this fire was slow in arriving, because all of the radio gear was destroyed. Routine HF communication from this station has been interrupted.

From RIA Novosti:

Russia Antarctic research station fire kills one, injures two

MOSCOW, October 9 (RIA Novosti) - A two-story building, part of Russia's Progress station in Antarctica, caught fire killing one construction worker and seriously injuring two others, the expedition's head said on Thursday.

Valery Lukin said the fire broke out on Sunday on the station, where 29 people are based, completely destroying the radio equipment, which made it impossible to contact Russian officials about the incident until Thursday.

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The Progress research station was opened in 1989 and is located in the Larsemann Hills in East Antarctica. The station is around 1.5 kilometers from China's Zhong Shan research station, where the injured Russians are receiving medical treatment.