Russian NHL ace Malkin donates $60K to Magnitogorsk tragedy victims
Pittsburgh Penguins star Evgeni Malkin has donated $60,000 to help victims of the apartment block explosion in his hometown of Magnitogorsk, which claimed the lives of 39 people and left dozens without a home.
The tragedy occurred on New Year's Eve, when a suspected gas leak led to an explosion which caused an entire block of the high-rise building to collapse.
“Today, on January 9, Evgeni Malkin told Metallurg Magnitogorsk authorities that he had transferred a sum of money equivalent to 4 million rubles ($60,000 ) to the Credit Ural bank account established for helping the victims of the Magnitogorsk tragedy,” Malkin’s former hockey club wrote on its website.
“He also informed that Pittsburgh Penguins players have also launched a fund-raising campaign for the victims and will send the money to the specially-created account in the near future.”
After the tragedy, the two-time Stanley Cup holder wore skates with special messages dedicated to those who had died or lost relatives in the fatal explosion.
Here is a look at Evgeni Malkin inscribing the messages on his skates. pic.twitter.com/izdkutBphv
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) January 3, 2019
Malkin’s skates bore messages in Russian which translated as "Magnitogorsk, we are with you" and "Magnitogorsk, you are in my heart."
