Clubs and concert venues are asked to ensure the evacuation of people with limited mobility

Russian concert halls and stadiums need to be checked to ensure emergency evacuation accessibility for people with disabilities. Public figure, popular blogger with cerebral palsy Ivan Bakaidov called for this. He points to the tragic death of 25-year-old Maxim Verbenin during the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall: a man using a wheelchair was unable to leave the concert hall due to the lack of ramps – and was shot by the attackers. Mr. Bakaidov asks citizens to check the nearest public spaces, and if they are inaccessible for people with limited mobility, contact the administration of the institution and the prosecutor’s office. The head of the All-Russian Society of Disabled People, State Duma deputy Mikhail Terentyev argues that the legislation already spells out all the requirements for a barrier-free environment and fire supervision, it is necessary to strengthen control over their compliance. However, representatives of the concert business complain about the redundancy of the rules, which are also divided into different documents.

Programmer and blogger Ivan Bakaidov called on Russian citizens to join the campaign for “accessibility and safety of public spaces for all people, including people with disabilities.” He pointed out the importance of a barrier-free environment using the example of the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall on March 22, 2024. At that time, 25-year-old Maxim Verbenin was in the concert hall, who, due to spinal muscular atrophy, could only move in a wheelchair. After the shooting started, some people were able to run out of the hall, but there was no ramp near the passage next to Mr. Verbenin. The man was shot almost point-blank. “Terrorism is always senseless and merciless. But people with disabilities are slightly less likely to survive in times of disaster,” Mr. Bakaidov wrote on social networks. “I have written and spoken before about the fact that ramps are necessary for freedom of movement, for a person’s full life. But after Crocus I realized that I was wrong. Ramps are also needed so that everyone has a chance to escape.” He stated that this is a systemic problem and listed several St. Petersburg clubs where “there is no accessibility for people with disabilities.” “You can come to these clubs – the security guards help and bring strollers into the VIP seats, but will the security guards come for people with disabilities in case of danger?” – the man pointed out.

Together with the law office of Kaloy Akhilgov, Mr. Bakaidov has prepared application templates that will help “take a step towards a more inclusive society.” The first appeal is to the administration of the nearest concert hall, theater, cinema and other public places. “In the letter, you express your concern regarding the accessibility of a specific place and ask for information about what measures will be taken to solve this problem,” suggested Mr. Bakaidov. “If they didn’t answer you or answered, but they gave up and everything remains the same, write second letter”. The second appeal is to the prosecutor’s office with a request to “check compliance with the legislation on the accessibility of public spaces.”

The head of the All-Russian Society of Disabled Persons (VOI) and State Duma deputy Mikhail Terentyev (United Russia) told Kommersant that it is quite difficult to assess the scale of the problem: “When there is no emergency, a person does not always pay attention to evacuation routes. But the absence of complaints does not mean the absence of problems.” Mr. Terentyev supported Mr. Bakaidov’s initiative, but complained that, “unfortunately, it only focuses on wheelchair users and ramps.” “The legislation contains requirements for evacuation routes, safe zones that are equipped with smoke removal, and elements for evacuation for the blind and deaf. Of course, the form should reflect all aspects of accessibility for different nosologies,” the deputy points out.

“Residential buildings, engineering, transport and social infrastructure facilities must be designed and constructed in such a way as to ensure their accessibility for people with disabilities and other groups of the population with limited mobility,” says Dmitry Malinin, chairman of the Kemerovo bar association “Yurproekt”. The obligation of developers to ensure the accessibility of buildings for people with limited mobility is enshrined primarily in the federal law “Technical Regulations on the Safety of Buildings and Structures.” The same Federal Law stipulates that all national standards and sets of rules approved by the government of the Russian Federation must be observed “on a mandatory basis,” says Mr. Malinin. One of such documents is “SP 59.13330.2020. Set of rules. Accessibility of buildings and structures for people with limited mobility.” “It says there, for example, that in order to get to the stage, in addition to stairs, a stationary or access ramp or lifting device must be provided,” says the lawyer.

In turn, Mikhail Terentyev points out that the Ministry of Construction “recently once again launched the process of excluding the 59th set of rules from the mandatory requirements for an accessible environment during the construction of new buildings or major renovations.” “This set of rules also takes into account the elements of creating safe routes of movement and evacuation,” the deputy explained. “Having seen the draft resolution, I wrote to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and asked him not to accept it under any circumstances. We must not reduce accessibility legislation.”

The head of VOI is confident that if there is well-developed legislation, the problem can only be solved through state control: “Everything related to human safety must be controlled and verified by fire supervision. And firefighters, of course, must pay attention to all aspects of the accessible environment during an evacuation.”

The president of the promotion company NCA, Mikhail Shurygin, noted in a conversation with Kommersant that the sphere of mass events in Russia has never encountered events similar to the terrorist attack in Crocus. “It is impossible to prevent this within the framework of the safety standards that concert venues must now meet,” he is sure. Mr. Shurygin agrees that after the terrorist attack there should be large-scale legislative changes, but “the issue of ensuring a barrier-free environment is unlikely to be in the foreground.” Commenting on Mr. Bakaidov’s initiative, the promoter suggested that “a targeted solution to both security and accessibility problems will not be effective.” “Without a separate law that will specify all the requirements for holding mass events, different departments and businesses will blame each other. But it will be possible to include in the articles of such a law those requirements that people with disabilities are now talking about,” says Mr. Shurygin.

Emilia Gabdullina, Polina Yachmennikova