Investigators in Almaty are working to establish the circumstances of a fire in a two-storey residential building where the roof collapsed during firefighting and four people were injured. Witnesses described the condition of the victims and the details of the incident, infohub.kz reports.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations had earlier reported a fire on the roof of a two-storey residential building in the Aigerim-1 microdistrict of Almaty's Alatau district. The roof collapsed during firefighting, injuring four people.

Witnesses told a television channel that the fire broke out in a privately owned house that is rented out, though residents describe it as a dormitory. According to the city akimat, about 20 people lived there.

Witnesses suspect the blaze may have been caused by a gas cylinder explosion.

"Looks like a gas cylinder exploded. I live here and I went deaf. Honestly, I went deaf. I ran out and neighbours started gathering. Then I learned from neighbours that it could be heard even 500 metres away. It was like an earthquake, there was a shockwave," witness Yusuf Ilakhunov said.

The city health department reported on the condition of the four victims taken to Almaty hospitals. Doctors are currently fighting for the lives of two of them.

"Two patients are in extremely serious condition in intensive care. The condition of the other two victims is assessed as moderately serious. All the victims are receiving the necessary medical care in full," said Laila Imangaliyeva, deputy head of the Almaty Public Health Department.

Specialists from the Department of Emergency Situations will have to establish the full picture of what happened. The agency is currently making no statements about the preliminary cause of the fire. Meanwhile, residents of the building are hastily gathering their surviving belongings and moving out.

"It's been less than a month since we moved in. We hadn't had time to get to know anyone, so I don't know who lived here. We left for work early and came back late. Our belongings are all intact because we were on the first floor, and everything burned on the second. We paid 150,000 tenge for rent. Whether we'll get that money back, I don't know," said resident Imanbek Duburbek.

Officials said the akimat will help residents who have nowhere to stay. They have provided temporary housing for five families.