Saint Petersburg Sports and Concert Complex

History

In the Soviet era, it was called V. I. Lenin Sport & Concert Complex (). The complex was completed in 1979 and opened in 1980.

Besides concerts, the arena was used for various sports, notably tennis, as it was the location of the St. Petersburg Open. Other sports hosted at the SKK include bowling, table tennis, and fencing.

On 31 January 2020, the roof and a large portion of the walls collapsed during the process of dismantling. Matvey Kucherov, a 29-year-old Russian demolition worker, was killed.

Drone footage of the incident shows Kucherov using a blowtorch to dismantle a supporting girder while working on the roof without a safety harness. As the structure began to rapidly fail, Kucherov attempted to reach a safety cage suspended by a nearby crane but was unable to secure himself before the roof and approximately 80% of the stadium's walls caved in. His body was recovered by emergency responders from the debris later that evening.

The investigation highlighted severe safety violations, including workers leaving suspended safety cages to perform dangerous hot work (using a blowtorch) on the roof structure itself. During the removal of the roof membrane, workers were cutting 112 support cables, causing a "loss of balance" in the structure. The premature collapse was attributed to the improper sequencing of cutting these supporting structures.

Guilty Verdicts, Sentencing and Compensation:

On July 5, 2021, guilty outcomes were formalized by the Moscow District Court of St. Petersburg. Three managers were found guilty of violating safety rules during construction or other work that resulted in the death of a person (Article 216, Part 2 of the Russian Criminal Code). All three defendants were sentenced to two years of suspended (conditional) imprisonment with a two-year probationary period. The court initially ordered the defendants to pay roughly 900,000 rubles ($12,000 at the time) to the victim’s family, though family members later filed additional civil claims for higher amounts.

Significant events

References

References

1. "ВИДЕО. Как рухнула крыша. Трагедией завершился снос спорткомплекса в Питере".
2. "Russian Demolition Worker Dies After Stadium Roof Collapses".
3. Times, The Moscow. (2020-01-31). "Stadium Roof Collapses in St. Petersburg, Killing Worker – Reports".
4. (2020-01-31). "Aerial footage shows Russian stadium collapse, leaving one worker dead".
5. "Новости России, СНГ и мира".
6. (2021-07-05). "Виновных в обрушении СКК «Петербургский» приговорили к условным срокам".
7. (2021-07-05). "За гибель рабочего при обрушении СКК "Петербургский" наказали условными сроками". Interfax.ru.