A massive explosion kills three people at a gunpowder factory that produces round-the-clock rocket launchers and air defense systems for the war against Ukraine
- The Perm Gunpowder Plant was torched by a series of strikes in Russia on Thursday
- Two people were burned alive amid fears more may have died
- The factory manufactures aircraft rocket engine charges and booster systems
A massive explosion killed three people at a gunpowder factory that made 24-hour missile launchers and air defense systems for the war in Ukraine.
According to reports, the Perm Gunpowder Plant, which produces Grad and Smerch weapons for Russian troops, went up in flames.
Video footage showed a plume of smoke rising in the distance, with some witnesses claiming to have seen the blast at the time of the attack.
Two of those killed were reportedly burned alive while others are feared dead and may be buried under the rubble.
The building also manufactures aircraft rocket engine loads, cruise missile booster systems and products for the A-135 missile defense system.
Video footage showed a plume of smoke rising in the distance, with some witnesses claiming to have seen the blast at the time of the attack
According to reports, there was an explosion and fire at around 8 p.m. Saturday in the large facilities sector 12.
The blast occurred amid suspicions of sabotage in connection with a series of blast fires at key Russian sites during the war.
The Russian Investigative Committee – which is similar to the FBI in Russia – is conducting an investigation into Saturday’s blast, reports say.
Last month, the Perm Munitions Plant said it had hired 350 additional workers to bolster Putin’s war effort.
According to reports, there was an explosion and fire at around 8 p.m. Saturday in the large facilities sector 12
The Perm Gunpowder Plant (pictured), which makes Grad and Smerch missile launch systems for Russian troops, was set ablaze by the strikes
The additional manpower should enable the plant to work three shifts within 24 hours to provide munitions for the war in Ukraine.
It follows reports that Russia lacks missiles with which to attack Ukraine.
A previous explosion at the same defense factory in Perm occurred on May 1, killing three women.
During the explosion in early May, an eyewitness told the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper: “The building just blew up.”
A woman named Svetlana couldn’t even run away, but the other girls fled – they were all burned.
“Olga had 100 percent body burns. She wasn’t even taken to the hospital.
“But Ulyana was alive, she had burns by 99 percent, and her son in the second grade is waiting for her at home.
“I don’t know how to go to work anymore. I’ve been crying the whole night.’
The names of the dead women explosives workers were: Svetlana Bardakova (59), Olga Savishchenko (43) and Ulyana Frants (36).