One of Russia’s largest manufacturers of industrial explosives blew up in flames overnight after a swarm of Ukrainian drones.
A succession of loud explosions were reported at the Sverdlov Plant in Dzerzhinsk, with clouds of white smoke rising from the enterprise in Nizhny Novgorod region in the wake of the attacks.
Eyewitnesses said that the first loud explosions were heard in the sky above the city at around 03:30, as locals took to Telegram to share details about the attack. A total of about ten explosions were reportedly heard with intervals of several minutes between them.
Footage showed a bright flash in what appeared to be a direct hit on the strategic plant. Russian air defences were also active around the plant.
The state-owned Sverdlov Plant also manufactures aviation and artillery shells, aerial bombs, components for cumulative anti-tank guided missiles, and warheads for air defence systems.
The plant was included in Ukraine’s sanctions list “for supporting actions that undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine”.
The Dzerzhinsk plant had also been sanctioned by all major Western countries, including the EU, the UK, the US, Japan and Switzerland, as a key supplier for Putin’s war machine.
Four firefighters were reported injured after the strike, receiving minor shrapnel wounds. The region’s governor, Gleb Nikitin, said that the firefighters were “given the necessary medical care, everyone was sent home”.
Separately, huge explosions were recorded on videos in both Oryol and Lipetsk cities amid attacks from Ukrainian kamikaze drones.
The targets in these regions – both key locations for Russia’s military-industrial complex – were not immediately clear.
The Russian defence ministry claimed to have shot down 110 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 18 in Oryol region, and 27 in Lipetsk region.
Some 43 were downed over Kursk region. One targeting Moscow region was downed but more were reported, according to the ministry. Kazan airport was closed this morning amid suspected drone strikes.
A day earlier a key Russian microelectronics plant caught fire after a jet-powered kamikaze drone strike by Ukraine.
The vast Kremniy El complex in Bryansk region reportedly manufactures microchips for Vladimir Putin’s deadly Iskander ballistic missiles.
One of the biggest electronics bases in Russia with 1,700-plus workers, it also makes key hi-tech parts for multiple other lethal weapons.
Locals said the plant was ablaze following the thunderous nighttime strikes as Ukraine penetrated Russian air defences.