A massive blaze, which turned a sports center in the city of Reutov just outside Moscow into an inferno, terrified the residents of a nearby high-rise block and prompted an evacuation.

The fire at a local indoor tennis club began early on Thursday and quickly spread throughout the building. The blaze soon engulfed an area of 1,000 square meters, with plumes of thick black smoke ascending into the air.

The terrifying sight was filmed by a resident of a neighboring apartment block. The cameraman in the footage is asked to urgently close the fifth-floor window as the inferno is raging outside. “I’m not going there,” he shouts in response. However, the man musters enough courage to approach the window and shut it tight while filming an impressive panorama of the fire.

There was a real risk of the blaze spreading to the nearby high-rise building and the authorities decided to evacuate it, Rossiya 24 broadcaster reported. The fire was eventually put out by the emergency services, but the tennis club was almost completely destroyed.

The fire was eventually put out by the emergency services, but the tennis club was almost completely destroyed.

There are no reports of deaths or injuries as a result of the incident. The five people who were at the sports center when the blaze broke out managed to flee in time.

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