Compressed air in a gas pipe exploded Monday during repair work in northern Moscow, killing one person and injuring at least two others, officials said.
One passer-by was killed when an advertising structure from a nearby building fell on him. A worker and a second passer-by were hospitalized with serious injuries, while a third person received moderate injuries, a medical source told Interfax.
More than 80 vehicles parked in the area, along Dmitrovskoye Shosse, were damaged, the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement. Windows were broken in 15 apartments because of flying chunks of concrete and asphalt, and four balconies were damaged, the statement said.
Deputy Mayor Pyotr Biryukov told reporters at the scene that a criminal case had been opened to determine the cause of the blast and those responsible.
The explosion occurred at about 10:45 a.m. as four communal services workers were fixing a pipe, Investigative Committee said in a statement.