Was it a Ukrainian drone? Explosion and fire at Russian oil refinery
October 29, 2023, 12:28 pm Listen to the article
This audio version was artificially generated. More information | Send comments
Early in the morning, a fire breaks out at the Afipski oil refinery in the Krasnodar region in southern Russia. According to authorities, the fire has now been extinguished. Nobody was injured. No official cause of the fire has been identified, but there is speculation.
A fire broke out overnight at the site of an oil refinery in southern Russia. Authorities in the Krasnodar region announced this morning that there were no casualties or damage. The fire has now been extinguished. No official cause of the fire was reported. However, it was suspected on social media that a drone had attacked the area. A video purportedly showing the incident was also shared.
Russian Telegram news channels “Shot” and “Baza” wrote that the fire was caused by a drone strike. This cannot currently be independently verified. Residents reported an explosion. The Afipski plant, which was last attacked in May, can process around six million tons of oil annually. The refinery is located about 80 kilometers from Novorossiysk on the Black Sea – one of Russia’s most important ports for oil exports. Russian fighter jets repeatedly launch strikes against Ukraine from Krasnodar.
Ukraine has fired several rockets at Russian cities in recent months. Last month, Russia reported a massive fire at a fuel depot near Sochi airport. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Kiev is increasingly trying to undermine Moscow’s war efforts through frequent drone and saboteur attacks on Russia’s military and transportation infrastructure far from the front lines.
Moscow: Dozens of drone attacks repelled
The Russian Defense Ministry also reported a total of 36 Ukrainian drone attacks over the Black Sea and the annexed Crimean peninsula this morning, all of which were reportedly repelled. The Krasnodar region is connected to Crimea via the Crimean Bridge, which Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
Russia has been waging a war of aggression against its neighboring country for more than 20 months. In this context, Ukrainian attacks on Russian military installations and infrastructure occur repeatedly. However, the casualties and damage are disproportionate to the consequences of the war in the attacked Ukraine.