The Home of the Last Tsar - Romanov and Russian History

Yekaterinburg, April 30, Interfax - The Ganina Yama crypt in Yekaterinburg, built where the remains of the family of Russia's last tsar Nicholas II were found, caught fire on Wednesday morning.

"Firefighters have already arrived at the scene. It has not yet been determined what precisely is burning. There is no information on casualties," the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry's department for the Sverdlovsk region told Interfax.

In 1991, the remains of the tsar family were found in Ganina Yama near Yekaterinburg. On July 17, 1998, the remains were buried in the imperial tomb in the Petropavlovskaya Fortress in St. Petersburg.

The genetic tests performed on the remains in 1998 confirmed that the remains are those of Nicholas II and his family.

In July 2007, body parts belongings to two people were found near Yekaterinburg. The people were identified as a child aged between 10 and 14 and a 20-year old woman. Experts believe the remains may be those of crown prince Alexey and princess Maria Romanova.

A monastery in honor of the tsar's family, who have been recognized as martyrs, was built in Ganina Yama.