Explosions caused by a fire raged Wednesday in an ammunition depot in the Russian region of Ryazan, leading to the evacuation of a dozen villages, announced the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations.
A brush fire broke out in the afternoon on the territory of the ammunition depot in this region, some 200 km south-east of Moscow, and it spread to the warehouses, causing the explosions of weapons stored, he said in a statement.
“The evacuation of the inhabitants of a dozen villages located within a radius of 5 km (from the site of the disaster) is underway,” said the ministry according to which more than 1,600 people were evacuated.
The incident, which occurred near the village of Jeltoukhino, “did not cause any injuries,” assured the Russian army, which specifies that artillery ammunition was stored there.
The firefighters “are fighting against the fire, but are unable to control it (…), ammunition explosions are currently occurring,” said the press service of the Western Military District, which covers the region of Ryazan.
More than 100 people and 26 specialized vehicles were deployed to the scene to contain the fire, according to the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
He also deployed a train specialized in the fight against fires.
Helicopters and an aircraft were also put on alert to participate in the fight against fire if necessary.