Five people died in Russia"s northern city...

"On December 30, at 8:35 p.m. Moscow time (17:35 GMT), a fire broke out in a two-story wooden residential building, apparently as a result of fire-safety violations," the source said, adding the fire had destroyed two apartments.

The blaze was extinguished by about 1 a.m. and firefighters discovered five bodies at the scene. The dead are being identified.

Fires killed more than 15,000 people in Russia last year and the country"s fire-safety record has come under scrutiny since the December 5 blaze in a Perm nightclub that has killed 152 people.

The Perm tragedy prompted the government to order checks for violations of fire regulations at public venues across the country, and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin described fire safety measures in Russia as "insufficient and ineffective."

MOSCOW, December 31 (RIA Novosti)