Moscow, Sept. 7 (PTI): Two crew members were killed in a blaze onboard a Russian nuclear submarine in the Barents Sea but there was no danger of explosion, the defence ministry said.

The fire broke out onboard a nuclear submarine belonging to the Russian Northern Fleet late last night in which a warrant officer and a sailor were killed.

"Last night, a fire occurred on board the Daniil Moskovsky nuclear-powered submarine in the Barents Sea," the defence ministry spokesman said. "Two crew members were killed in the fire, but there is no danger of an explosion."

He said a fire in the electrical circuit caused an automatic shutdown of the nuclear reactor but that it was quickly extinguished.

The K-414 Daniil Moskovsky, a Victor III class nuclear-powered submarine, was commissioned by the Russian Navy in March 1991 and participated in a search-and-rescue effort during the Kursk nuclear submarine tragedy in August 2000.

The surfaced submarine is being towed to Vidyayevo naval base, the spokesman said.

The Northern Fleet's military prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into the incident.

Russia's Northern Fleet is the mainstay of the country's nuclear triad.

In 2000 its nuclear submarine 'Kursk' had sunk following a torpedo blast in the tube killing its 118 crew.