On the night of December 4-5, Perm remembered the anniversary of the sensational “Lame Horse” tragedy. Dozens of people came to the burnt club that night. A living monument of candles and flowers grew on the steps of the club and the parapet. And one of the local deputies even decided to personally protest against the irresponsibility and corruption that led to one of the most terrible events of the last year in Russia.
The first anniversary of the tragedy was remembered not only in churches. On the day of mourning, Verdi’s “Requiem” was performed at the Perm Opera House. That evening about 200 musicians took to the stage.
Meanwhile, even at half past twelve at night, the flow of people did not stop at the site of the tragedy. At the Lame Horse, a memorial service began for those killed in the terrible fire, where three and a half minutes claimed 103 human lives. And later, another 53 people died in hospitals over a month and a half of burns and poisoning.
Even a year later, many who suffered in the terrible fire or whose relatives died in this club cannot hold back their tears. Natalya Beze, whose eldest daughter Irina died in the Lame Horse, and whose youngest daughter Marina received severe burns to her hands, face and body, has a hard time remembering the events of that night. “We came to the scene of the tragedy with the whole family to honor the memory of those guys who came to the holiday but stayed here. Our blessed memory,” says Natalya Beze. – For me personally, the grief has already gone beyond our family. We pray for all the kids whom God gave a second chance. We pray for those girls who are still in the hospital in serious condition. There are still many difficult days ahead.”
Her daughter Marina is having a hard time right now. The girl needs plastic surgery and expensive medications. On the night of the fire, Marina was saved by a miracle: the crowd knocked her down, and the molten toxic polystyrene was already burning the girl’s hands and face. Marina woke up in the hospital.
But if Marina Beze and other victims were able to leave the hospital, recognize their relatives, and return together, then the condition of the other two girls - Irina Pekarskaya and Irina Bannikova - is critical. A year later, both Perm girls are in the hospital. Irina Pekarskaya is undergoing treatment in Germany. And Irina Bannikova, in fact, is left to the mercy of fate. She does not move, does not speak. Foreign clinics that treat the most difficult patients can get the girl back on her feet. There is a chance, but it is a very expensive treatment. Irina’s family raises money on their own, without the help of local officials.
Now Irina’s husband Evgeny Bannikov has been offered an option - treatment in an Israeli clinic. On Friday, December 3, Israeli specialists came to Irina Bannikova’s regional hospital. Doctors examined the girl. The doctors’ verdict again gave hope: the chance of restoring Irina’s health is, of course, small, only a few percent, but in case of successful rehabilitation, the girl can return to normal life.
Just for the first stage of treatment in an Israeli clinic, Irina’s family needs 2 million rubles. The German hospital asked Evgeniy for 200 thousand euros. Another clinic said that a month of treatment costs 60 thousand euros. So far, thanks to donations to Irina’s account, Evgeniy has been able to collect only 1.5 million rubles. Anyone can help the Bannikov family by using a bank transfer.
Evgeniy is on duty at Irina’s bedside around the clock. Now the girl is practically immobilized, a year later the pain has not gone away. “I believe that Irina will recover. Although they say that it is impossible to restore her health one hundred percent, I still believe. And I will do everything so that she can get up,” says Evgeny Bannikov, without letting go of his wife’s hand.
Irina’s 30% of the cerebral cortex is damaged - the part that is responsible for movement. But in the girl’s treatment there is positive dynamics. “Irina began to react better. At one time it was that in response to requests she raised thumb. They asked her to raise this finger, and she could do it,” says Evgeniy.
Irina worked as a bartender at Lame Horse. A month before the fire, she received a call from the club and asked her to go out to work because there was not enough staff. At the time of the tragedy, the girl went out only for the fourth time.
Let us remind you that 156 people died in the fire. 146 children lost their parents, 9 of whom remained orphans. The victims and their representatives filed claims for compensation for moral and material damage in the amount of more than 4 billion rubles. The criminal case about the fire contains 139 volumes.
There are eight people in the dock. Among them are those whom the investigation calls the owners of the establishment, as well as pyrotechnicians - the organizers of the fire show and employees of the State Fire Supervision Service Perm region. And also the head of the GPN.
Another action, which was held on the anniversary of the tragedy, was organized by deputy of the regional legislative assembly Andrei Agishev. He decorated the windows of his popular store in the city with huge signs that read “Corruption Kills.”
The girls loved Friday get-togethers at the Lame Horse
Two sisters burned in the fire
The victims of the tragedy were four friends who that evening came to a party at the Perm club “Lame Horse” - 31-year-old Evgenia Yugova, her cousin 33-year-old Olga Balandina, 30-year-old Tatyana Belyaeva and 38-year-old Galina Khovanskaya.
I talked to Zhenechka literally on Thursday, she told me that she was going to a club with the girls,” says their friend Natasha Golitsina. - The four of them went there every Friday - it was a young business. And I was invited. But I couldn’t, there was no one to leave the little child with. Who knew that this Friday everything would turn out so terrible. We were told that Zhenechka died. Her husband identified her and went to the morgue. He is shocked by what happened and doesn’t know how to move on. My wife’s cousin Olya Balandina was neither among the living nor among the dead, her phone did not answer calls. And they just told me that Olya also died. Her common-law husband Oleg has now left for the morgue. Tanya Belyaeva is now in the hospital, she miraculously managed to survive, but 50 percent of her body was burned. Doctors are afraid to give prognoses - they cannot survive with such burns... And she has a little son - 4-year-old Egorka. It is unknown what happened to 38-year-old Galya Khovanskaya. Her mobile phone doesn’t answer either... We hope that suddenly she wasn’t with them... The girls were so happy...
Four best friends had known each other for 10 years, they worked as sales representatives.
Zhenya Yugova loved very much
trips
Zhenya got married a year ago,” says Evgenia’s friend Natalya Zayakina. - She was so smart. And her husband looked after her so beautifully. All the girls were jealous of her. Immediately after they met, her husband bought her a car. He constantly took her abroad.
Tonight, relatives identified the body of the fourth friend - 38-year-old Galina Khovanskaya...
The wife died in the arms of her beloved: the DJ husband tried to save his bartender wife after an explosion in the club
Husband and wife Ivan and Irina Ustinov both worked at the ill-fated Lame Horse nightclub. He's a cheerful, up-and-coming young DJ, she's a bartender. Less than a year has passed since the noisy, cheerful wedding...
When the explosions occurred and the room caught fire, 24-year-old Ivan Ustinov rushed to look for his wife, but the crowd, rushing to the exit like a wave, carried him out of the club.
“Together with everyone else, I ran through the hall, it was impossible to stop - there was a terrible commotion, but I hoped that my beloved had time to leave the hall,” Ivan sobs. “And then I saw her being carried out of the club in their arms.” I rushed to her. I tried to pump it out right on the bare ground, but it didn’t work. Didn't save...
Ivan Ustinov does not know how to live without his Irisha
In desperation, Ivan performed artificial respiration, shouting throughout the square: “Irina, live! Irina, live!!!” I pumped her out as best I could. The doctors ran up and urgently took her away in an ambulance.
But it was too late to save Irina.
The doctors said she was dead,” Ivan says in a wooden voice. “I came home and told Irishka’s mother that she was no longer there.
But my mother doesn’t believe it, she continues to hope for a miracle until the very end: what if the doctors got confused, made a mistake.
“I held on and am holding on as best I can,” mother Larisa Nikolaevna cries. - My daughter is only 25 years old. She and Ivan are such a beautiful couple. And both work in the same club. In a month they have their first anniversary - a year life together... Ivan is such a talented DJ. He loves his job so much. He had such a music library! He collected it for five years. “She burned down,” Larisa Nikolaevna whispers, as if by inertia.
This club management killed my Irisha and a hundred visitors,” Ivan’s face darkens. - The guests running out of the burning room did not know that there was another way out - to jump out, breaking the windows. Only they were not visible - they were all draped with thick curtains...
For their relatives they were the only ones...
The fire in the Lame Horse orphaned hundreds of Perm families: pensioners lost their only children and grandchildren, small children lost their mothers.
The elderly Miroshnichenko spouses cannot find relief from the grief that befell them: their only daughter, thirty-year-old Olga, was among the victims of a party at the Lame Horse club.
Our girl, our daughter Olenka, died, she was the only one we had,” mother Galina Nikolaevna, exhausted from tears, cries. - Very young, still to live and live. And because of someone’s negligence, we will never see her again... Something has been happening every week lately! This is outrageous! - the elderly mother shouts. - Lord, why did she go there? Why didn't I stop her?..
30-year-old Irina Limonova and 29-year-old Anastasia Ivleva have been friends since their youth, they were best friends. Both had small children left orphans.
When, in the midst of the fun, a fire suddenly started, neither Ira nor Nastya had time to get out of the smoke-filled room. Their bodies were discovered by firefighters. By that time, both friends were dead.
Irina has a little son, and Nastya has a daughter,” said friends of the dead girls. - This is a real shock for all of us. I still can’t believe that they are no more...
One of Irina Limonova’s friends wrote in her forum on a social networking site: “Irinka, my dear friend. I'll miss you very much. You always joked that it was better to die dancing...” It’s scary, but the words turned out to be prophetic...
Natasha Kononerskaya had been especially cheerful and happy lately - the girl was getting married.
Natalya was a cheerful, cheerful person, she never lost heart and loved to travel,” Natalya’s friend Olga cries. - She had a fiance with whom she was going to tie her fate. There were many plans for the future - Natasha was finishing renovations in the apartment. I can’t imagine how her mother and brother will be able to survive this tragedy. She went to the club with her friend Olga, Olga survived, she is now in the hospital.
Tatyana Mitrakova was the only joy and light in the window for two old people - grandfather and grandmother.
“Tanya has only her grandparents left in the city of Cherdyn,” a friend of the girl told Life News. - Her mother died a year ago. Now Tatyana followed her... Her body was identified by friends. The old people have yet to learn about Tanya’s death. I'm afraid they won't be able to bear the new grief...
Angel saved
It was only a guardian angel who prevented the death of two birthday girls who came to the ill-fated Perm club “Lame Horse” on the terrible night of December 4-5 to celebrate their angel days.
Yulia Bogdanova celebrated her 27th birthday. The cheerful birthday girl, accompanied by a group of friends, went to her favorite club, not suspecting what a tragedy the long-anticipated party would turn into...
When the ceiling of the hall flared up like a match and caustic chemical smoke poured out from the wall panels, it was too late for Yulia to run to the exit blocked by the crowd. In a matter of seconds, fumes filled the lungs. The room was shrouded in thick fog, and from that moment Yulia no longer remembers anything...
Now Yulia has been flown to Moscow. In extremely serious condition, the girl was hospitalized in the intensive care unit of the 36th hospital.
The girl has severe burns of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th degrees, the hospital told Life News. - 70 percent of her body was burned - her face, torso, limbs and upper respiratory tract.
21-year-old Yana Shcherbinina came to the club with her mother, husband Andrei and family - on this birthday they wanted to be close and have fun to the fullest, like the last time...
The presenter invited those wishing to take part in the competition - Yana and her mother responded willingly. The charming mother and daughter, laughing cheerfully at the host’s jokes, were etched in the memory of all the guests.
This competition was the last at the ill-fated party. Just a few minutes later, fire engulfed the club. Then seconds decided - the crowd of guests rushing to the exit, like a feather, carried mom out into the street.
Yana! Andrey! - the grief-stricken mother screamed desperately, trying to get back into the club, already blocked by rescuers.
A few minutes later they were taken out of the club engulfed in fire - burned, swallowed by acrid smoke, but alive. The young couple were hospitalized with severe burns.
...All of Perm plunged into deep mourning. Passers-by do not hide their tears at the scene of the death of hundreds of Perm residents. to the entrance to nightclub“A lame horse”, townspeople carry armfuls of fresh flowers - again, again... just like a year ago, when a Boeing crashed in Perm, burying 88 passengers and crew members under the rubble.
Perm residents strewn the ground near the nightclub with live carnations
We are trying in every possible way to help all people, we suggest when and where funeral services will take place; funeral services are already taking place in all churches,” Perm priest Father Luke told Life News. - Tomorrow, when the names of all the dead become known, we will pray for the souls of the departed. Five churches in Perm will say goodbye to the dead...
Another defendant in the fire case will soon be extradited to Russia from Spain. As reported by the Investigative Committee at the Prosecutor's Office, we are talking about. He is one of the co-owners of the burned club. At the end of August he was detained by Spanish police. As soon as Mrykhin is on Russian territory, he will appear in court.
Meanwhile, on Monday the first court hearing in the case of the fire in the Lame Horse took place in Perm. There are eight people in the dock. These are club managers, show organizers and fire safety inspectors. The tragedy in the Perm club occurred in December 2009. As a result, 156 people died, 400 were recognized as victims.
A special hall was allocated for today - the premises of the former cultural center. It can accommodate all participants in the process. Only 400 people were recognized as victims. Today, however, no more than fifty came.
There are eight accused in the dock. Behind bars are co-founder of the Lame Horse club Anatoly Zak, executive director Svetlana Efremova, art director Oleg Fetkulov and organizer of the pyrotechnic show Igor Derbenev, as well as the now former chief fire inspector of the Perm Territory Vladimir Mukhutdinov. Three more accused are under recognizance not to leave the place.
This happened on the night of December 5, 2009. During a party celebrating the eighth anniversary of the Lame Horse Club, the straw ceiling directly above the stage suddenly burst into flames. People instantly lost consciousness from the acrid smoke, and burning plastic, dripping onto people, left deep burns. In a few minutes, more than 100 people died. Later in hospitals in Perm, Moscow and St. Petersburg. In total, 156 people became victims of the tragedy. Dozens of victims are still undergoing treatment.
Natalya Beze lost her eldest daughter Irina in that fire. The youngest, Marina, still needs a number plastic surgery, as well as expensive lung treatment. Natalya says: nine months later, the condition of many victims began to deteriorate again. “It turns out this way: the farther from the tragedy, the more new sores appear. These are both the consequences of poisoning and the consequences of anesthesia. This is a very heavy load on the heart,” says Natalya Beze.
The Beze family came to court today along with other victims. Almost everyone lucky enough to survive still needs treatment. A harsh sentence is expected from the court.
Those involved in the case have been charged under very modest charges: either providing services that do not meet safety requirements and resulting in death by negligence, or violating the rules for the use of pyrotechnic products, and the employees of the State Supervision Authority, who, according to the Investigative Committee, turned a blind eye to numerous violations during the redevelopment of the club, - abuse of power and negligence. The owners and managers of the club face up to ten years in prison, and firefighters and pyrotechnicians - no more than five. In addition, today all those arrested asked to be released on their own recognizance.
“The whole case against me is fabricated,” the owner of the “Lame Horse” club, Anatoly Zak, is sure. “I have chronic illnesses. However, my statements and the statements of my lawyer are ignored.”
However, the opinion of the victims is exactly the opposite. All those involved in the case should be behind bars. “I’ll feel safer if they all sit down,” says Natalya Beze.
In addition to choosing a preventive measure, the court today must set a date for the start of the main court hearing. No one can even guess how long the process will last. It is necessary to study 120 volumes of the criminal case, interview several hundred victims and witnesses.
The ill-fated club, which has apparently been closed forever, still represents a kind of place of mourning. Flowers are still brought here. Even the shops that operated in the neighborhood were closed. There are still few clients. Local authorities are now considering the possibility of erecting a memorial here.
The idea of turning over the club where 156 people burned to death into a rehabilitation center was met with hostility by relatives of the victims
The Perm administration intends to appeal to the city duma with an initiative to transfer the premises former club The Lame Horse, where 156 people died in a fire in December 2009, is being used free of charge as a rehabilitation center.
MK found out how the relatives of the victims perceived this initiative.
We reached Natalya Beze in Perm, who lost her eldest daughter Irina on that fateful night in the Lame Horse. Her youngest daughter, Marina, miraculously survived. During the fire, she lay on the floor, under boiling polystyrene dripping from the ceiling. She was badly burned right side body, hands and face. Rehabilitation dragged on for several years. The girl underwent several plastic surgeries.
It is reported that the rehabilitation center will provide medical and psychological assistance to both victims of the terrible fire and children with cerebral palsy, patients after a stroke, and with neurological disorders after various injuries.
I would like to see those victims who went through the crucible, miraculously survived, and would want to come to this building for rehabilitation. I think that none of them will come to the former building of the Lame Horse club. Although many of the victims continue to be treated. People developed stomach ulcers, pneumonia, bronchitis, blood poisoning, and even memory loss from the ingestion of toxic gases emitted by the burning casing.
-What is the condition of this building now?
It has been empty for a long time, the facade of the building was recently restored, and now, as they say, renovations are underway inside.
-In the building of the former club they are going to place offices for a neurologist, therapist, traumatologist, and rehabilitation specialist.
If I were in the place of doctors, even for good salary and a convenient schedule, I wouldn’t agree to work in this damned place. I was there after the fire, walked all the way where my children crawled, suffocating in the smoke. Psychics feel the pain and bitterness of our children, people with abilities read this information from the walls of the building. There should be, in my opinion, a memorial there. People should come there to mourn and pray.
The relatives of those killed in the fire at the Lame Horse club in Perm have not been able to receive compensation for five years, and the perpetrators are about to be released.
Birthday
The building of the Lame Horse club, where a fire broke out on December 5, 2009, claiming 156 lives, may turn into a rehabilitation center. For 2 years now, Sergei Kolpakov, whose wife Irina miraculously survived and is still bedridden, has been working on its creation in Perm. He treated her both in Moscow and in Germany. And then he set about creating a clinic where they would help people like his wife. The most insoluble problem was not the search for equipment or special simulators, and... a place where you can stay. They settled down outside the city at a training base for biathletes, but the growing athletes soon needed the premises to prepare for future Olympics. In March 2014, the administration of the Perm region offered Kolpakov the Lame Horse building.
“I went to our Belogorsk St. Nicholas Monastery for a blessing,” admits Sergei. - He said it was scary. But the priest replied: “Treating people is a godly thing. Take it! But be sure to consecrate the place.”
After the fire, the club remained abandoned; prayers for the dead are held near it every year. And last year, the enclosing green mesh was finally removed from the façade and cosmetic repairs began. The windows and doors have already been replaced. But the walls inside are partially painted, soot still appears in some places, there are bags of building materials. And the decree on the creation of a rehabilitation center has not yet been signed. Meanwhile, Irina, who is lying in the regional hospital, is trying to... expel her from there.
“They tell me: “Take her away, send her to a boarding house,” says Sergei. – According to their standards, a budget patient has the right to stay in the hospital for only 10 days. But the region has taken on obligations for the victims! After Germany, Irina was sent specifically to neurology. She was in bed for three years and everything was fine. Even the bed underneath is ours, not a hospital bed. Only 30% of the drugs are state-owned; we get the rest ourselves. Irina is bedridden for life through no fault of her own, but every year it becomes more and more difficult to fight for her rights... I myself am not always with my wife: I resolve many organizational issues. To make sure I have enough money, I work part-time as a taxi driver at night. Every month I need at least 100 thousand rubles to help Irina. Our sons, Sasha and Arthur, live in Berezniki, with their grandmother, Irina’s mother. November 16 was Ira's birthday. I brought her favorite pink tulips to her room. The boys called: “Mom, congratulations! Get well soon!” Blowing her kisses. She listened to their voices and laughed..."
Without insurance
One daughter of Natalya Beze, Irina, died, the other, Marina, underwent a transplant of burnt skin on her face and arm.
“We, the parents of the victims, never managed to get due payments, says Natalya Viktorovna. – The wife of the club owner Anatoly Zak divorced him after the trial and divided the acquired property, although it was under arrest. She received property worth 111 million rubles: apartments, plots, cars, foreign currency bank accounts... According to the court decision, all victims whose loved one died in a fire should receive 1.5 million rubles. The largest amounts are 450 thousand rubles. everyone – Zach owes it. But we, for example, received only 20 thousand from him. He paid in full only to his injured friends, about a dozen of them.” Recently, the families of the victims, having learned that convicted pyrotechnician Sergei Derbenev and executive director Svetlana Efremova were asking for freedom, wrote a protest.
“We don’t want revenge, but justice,” says Natalya Beze. “They will come out without admitting guilt, and 156 families have lost relatives because of someone else’s self-interest...”
There is good news: one of the victims became pregnant. Doctors feared the consequences of poisoning with toxic substances. But, thank God, everything worked out.
// Photo: Personal archive of the heroine of the material
My fish!
Irina Bannikova worked as a manager at Lame Horse. In December 2009, she was on maternity leave, but she was asked to work...
“Israeli doctors believed that she would not be able to move her arms or legs, would not speak or stand up,” shares Irina’s mother, Tamara Gennadievna. “But the daughter is already raising her head and shoulders, smiling, pronouncing the syllables. He bends his arms and legs at the knees, moves them, tries to get up. All this is thanks to training on a motorized bike, this is a simulator for the disabled donated by philanthropists.”
6-year-old Kiryusha takes care of his mother. He brings her water and wishes her before going to bed: “Good night, my little fish!” and does not forget to say: “Mom, I love you very much!” The husband left Irina a year after the fire. I couldn't stand it.
“Sometimes he takes Kiryusha on a day off,” continues Tamara Gennadievna. “But there is no financial help from him.” We live on Irina’s disability pension - 11 thousand rubles. yes to mine. From Anatoly Zak, Irina’s card received 5 rubles, 1 ruble, 7... The director of the club, Efremova, helped with money while the trial was going on, then she stopped, although she promised. And we need a new one wheelchair with a soft lock for the head and body and a bed that allows you to change the position of the body. It’s expensive, about 130 thousand rubles, we can’t afford it ourselves...”
// Photo: Personal archive of the heroine of the material
For those who want to help Irina, we are publishing an account
Bank details:
Account No. 40817810949493531618
West Ural Bank
OJSC Sberbank of Russia
Bank INN 7707083893
BIC 045773603
Correspondent account 30101810900000000603
Recipient Bannikova Irina Nikolaevna
Contact number:
89519371111 Tamara Gennadievna Oborina (mother of Irina Bannikova)