A Russian military police building collapsed on the grounds of an army base outside Saint Petersburg, the local governor said yesterday, adding that authorities were probing the causes of the incident.

“I have instructed the security forces to assist the military in clearing the rubble and rescuing victims following the collapse of a military police building on the territory of a military unit in Sertolovo,” governor Alexander Drozdenko said.

“The causes of the incident are being investigated,” he added.

Sertolovo is a small village just outside Saint Petersburg, Russia’s second-biggest city.

Local media outlet 47news reported that three people died in the incident, citing emergency services.