MOSCOW: A small fire broke out on Tuesday in a nuclear research facility northwest of Moscow but was quickly contained before it reached the center's atomic reactors, emergency officials were quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
The fire at the Kurchatov Institute was triggered by a computer short-circuit and immediately set off an alarm at the firefighting division of the Russian emergency services ministry, according to the reports.
The blaze, which set off the alarm at the ministry at 8:35 pm (2205 IST), was put out within a half hour by firefighters.
"There was a short circuit in a computer and a table (most likely made of plastic) melted, causing thick smoke to disperse into adjoining rooms," a ministry official told
ITAR-Tass.
"There is no threat to the reactors," another emergency situations ministry official said, adding that the incident had not affected work at the institute.
