Current:Home > ScamsRussia oil depot hit by Ukrainian drone in flames as Ukraine steps up attacks ahead of war's 2-year mark-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Russia oil depot hit by Ukrainian drone in flames as Ukraine steps up attacks ahead of war's 2-year mark
View Date:2024-12-23 21:17:13
A Ukrainian drone struck an oil storage depot in western Russia on Friday, causing a massive blaze, officials said, as Kyiv's forces apparently extended their attacks on Russian soil ahead of the war's two-year anniversary. Four oil reservoirs with a total capacity of 1.6 million gallons were set on fire when the drone reached Klintsy, a city of some 70,000 people located about 40 miles from the Ukrainian border, according to the local governor and state news agency Tass.
The strike apparently was the latest in a recently intensified effort by Ukraine to unnerve Russians and undermine President Vladimir Putin's claim that life in Russia is going on as normal before its March 17 presidential election.
- Woman convicted of killing Russian pro-war blogger faces 28 year sentence
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has vowed to hit more targets inside Russian border regions this year. Russia's air defenses are concentrated in occupied regions of Ukraine, Kyiv officials say, leaving more distant targets inside Russia more vulnerable as Ukrainian forces develop longer-range drones.
The Russian city of Belgorod, also near the Ukrainian border, canceled its traditional Orthodox Epiphany festivities on Friday due to the threat of Ukrainian drone strikes. It was the first time major public events were known to have been called off in Russia due to the drone threat.
Ukrainian national media, quoting an official in Ukraine's Intelligence Service, said Ukrainian drones on Friday also attacked a gunpowder mill in Tambov, about 370 miles south of Moscow.
But Tambov Gov. Maxim Yegorov said the plant was working normally, according to Russia's RBC news outlet. The Mash news outlet had earlier reported that a Ukrainian drone fell on the plant's premises Thursday but caused no damage.
- U.S. veteran wounded in Ukraine war urges Congress to back funding
In another strike fitting the pattern, the Russian Defense Ministry said a Ukrainian drone was downed on the outskirts of St. Petersburg on Thursday.
The drone wreckage fell on the premises of the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal on the city's southern edge, according to Vladimir Rogov, who is in charge of coordination of the Russian-annexed regions of Ukraine. Mikhail Skigin, the terminal co-owner, confirmed that the drone was targeting the terminal.
St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, is about 560 miles north of the border with Ukraine.
In Klintsy, air defenses electronically jammed the drone but it dropped its explosive payload on the facility, Bryansk regional Gov. Alexander Bogomaz said. There were no casualties, he added.
Russian telegram channels shared videos of what they said was the blaze at the depot, which sent thick black plumes of smoke into the air. The fire is hard to put out and requires specialist equipment, Bogomaz said, adding that 32 people were evacuated from homes near the depot.
The same depot was struck by a Ukrainian drone in May last year, but the damage apparently was less significant.
Meanwhile, Russian shelling in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region killed a 57-year-old woman and a land mine there killed a man, the Ukrainian president's office reported Friday.
- In:
- War
- Ukraine
- Russia
- Drone
- Vladimir Putin
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy
veryGood! (24)
Related
- Powell says Fed will likely cut rates cautiously given persistent inflation pressures
- Arkansas AG sets ballot language for proposal to drop sales tax on diapers, menstrual products
- Machine Gun Kelly Responds on Bad Look After Man Rushes Stage
- Deion Sanders says Travis Hunter, Colorado's two-way star, cleared to return with protection
- A Pipeline Runs Through It
- Memorial honors 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire deaths that galvanized US labor movement
- Hamas’ attack on Israel pushes foreign policy into the 2024 race. That could benefit Nikki Haley
- How Israel's geography, size put it in the center of decades of conflict
- Kristin Cavallari's Ex Mark Estes Jokingly Proposed to This Love Island USA Star
- Bipartisan resolution to support Israel has over 400 co-sponsors: Texas congressman
Ranking
- Trump on Day 1: Begin deportation push, pardon Jan. 6 rioters and make his criminal cases vanish
- Jada Pinkett Smith Reveals She and Will Smith Had Been Separated for 6 Years Before 2022 Oscars
- The Machine: Diamondbacks rookie Corbin Carroll playing beyond his years in MLB playoffs
- Connor Bedard debut: Highlights, winners and losers from NHL's opening night
- Fantasy football Week 11: Trade value chart and rest of season rankings
- Why Jesse Palmer Definitely Thinks There Will Be a Golden Bachelorette
- 'Oh my God, that's a monster!': Alligator gar caught in Texas could set new world records
- Republicans appear no closer to choosing a new leader after candidate forum
Recommendation
-
MLS Star Marco Angulo Dead at 22 One Month After Car Crash
-
Stock market today: Asian shares rise after eased pressure on bonds pushes Wall Street higher
-
Third man sentenced in Michael K. Williams' accidental overdose, gets 5 years for involvement
-
AP PHOTOS: Rockets sail and tanks roll in Israeli-Palestinian war’s 5th day
-
'Treacherous conditions' in NYC: Firefighters battling record number of brush fires
-
In 'Dicks: The Musical', broad jokes, narrow audience
-
Israel strikes neighborhood after neighborhood in Gaza as war appears set to escalate
-
Cold comfort? Americans are gloomy on the economy but a new forecast from IMF signals hope