Fire breaks out at Russian oil depot near Ukrainian border — RT Russia and the former Soviet Union
A huge fire broke out Wednesday morning at a Russian oil depot in the southwest region of Bryansk, some 70 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. A media report suggests a drone may have been involved in the incident.
The fire in Surazh district was reported by regional governor Aleksandr Bogomaz on his official Telegram channel at 6 a.m. local time. He said the fire had spread to an area of 1,800 square meters. Russian emergency services dispatched more than 80 firefighters and equipment, including a fire train, to the scene.
At 9:30 a.m., the fire was located and completely extinguished an hour later. No casualties were reported.
An unnamed source within the Russian emergency services told Izvestiya news outlet that the fire may have been caused by unidentified explosive ordnance dropped by a drone. The source claimed that before the fire broke out, there were reports of a loud bang.
It was reported that the five thousand tonne oil storage facility was completely full at the time of the incident and the fire then spread to two other nearby tanks of similar capacity.
No official reason for the incident has yet been announced, but federal investigators have been dispatched to the scene, according to the governor. He also reported that shelling by Kyiv forces had caused power outages in the Suzemsky district, located just 10 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
Russian territories neighboring Ukraine, such as the Bryansk and Belgorod regions, have been repeatedly attacked since Moscow launched its military offensive against its neighbor in late February.
Earlier this month, a Ukrainian drone attacked another oil terminal in the Russian region of Orel, some 200 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
Russian regions neighboring Ukraine were placed on heightened alert last month. This decision gives local authorities additional authority to ensure security and respond quickly to any emergency.
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