The fire broke out Sunday in the Ostankino Tower above the 1,500-foot level, knocking out TV and other communications. Strong steel wires forming the skeleton of the structure have been weakened. But Interior Ministry spokesman Yevgeny Ryabtsev added a note of reassurance. Luzhkov told reporters that the exclusion zone around the tower would remain in force throughout the day. The fire broke out Sunday above the 1,500-foot level, knocking out TV and other communications.
Officials believe it was caused by a short circuit or overload in wiring used by a paging company.
The tower is surrounded by parkland in northern Moscow, about nine miles from the city center, and does not threaten residential structures. It is second in height only to Toronto's CN Tower, and was hailed as a marvel of Soviet engineering upon its completion. At the time, it surpassed the Empire State Building as the world's tallest structure. Some 300 firefighters were battling the blaze. Many were working from inside the structure, pouring chemicals on the blaze as a helicopter hovered outside.