Two Ukrainian helicopters bombed a gasoline depot on Russian territory in the town of Belgorod, in western Russia, about 40 kilometers from the border with Ukraine, the local governor reported Friday.
“There was a fire at the oil depot due to a bombardment launched by two Ukrainian military helicopters, which entered Russian territory flying at a low altitude,” Vyacheslav Gladkov reported on his Telegram account.
In another message, the governor indicated that firefighters were working to put out the fire and that two warehouse employees were injured. The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations affirmed on its side that 170 rescuers were intervening at the scene.
The ministry released a video showing firefighters in thermal suits putting out the flames. He said he had been warned of the fire at 05:51 local time (02:51 GMT) and confirmed the balance of two injuries.
The energy giant Rosneftowner of the warehouse, informed the Russian agencies that it evacuated its personnel at the site.
On the other hand, the director of a printing company near Belgorod, Konstantin Lakhnov, assured that his company was hit by fire from helicopters.
“Helicopters fired rockets at us… the windows are damaged, the equipment is destroyed or damaged… the roof is damaged,” he told the state agency TASS.
After the attack, local media reported queues of vehicles at gas stations, but the Energy Minister Nikolai Shulguinovassured that there would be no shortage of fuel.
Videos, allegedly recorded in Belgorod, were spread on social networks showing a helicopter launching missiles, and then the explosion.
On Wednesday, explosions were reported at an ammunition depot in the Belgorod region, without the Russian authorities clearly explaining the reason for the incident.
Belgorod is located about 80 km north of Kharkiv, a large Ukrainian city attacked by Russian forces since the start of the Kremlin offensive.
On February 25, local and Ukrainian media reported a Ukrainian attack on a Russian air base near Rostov, without it being officially confirmed.
