Second Blast Rocks Crimea Military Facilities, Russia Blames Sabotage

At least two people were injured in a sabotage-caused explosion Tuesday at an ammunition depot in the annexed Crimea Peninsula, Russian officials say, that has prompted an evacuation of residents out of the five-kilometer zone from the incident to ensure safety.

Media reports inform that the explosions caused damage to power lines, a power station, several residential houses, among other civilian objects, and a railroad, which also disrupted train traffic in Crimea.

Sergei Aksyonov, the head of the Russian-controlled Crimea administration said on his Telegram channel that the explosion in the village of Maiskoye, near the town of Dzhankoi, was caused by a fire.

However, an update by the Russian Defense Ministry issued later claims the incident that resulted in explosions was an intentional act, noting that the ministry is taking necessary measures to eliminate the consequences of the sabotage.

Although Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the incident, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhaylo Podolyak said on Twitter that the explosions were demilitarization in action.

Podolyak continued commenting that Russian-occupied Crimea is about warehouse explosions and a high risk of death for invaders and thieves.

Tuesday’s explosions are the second security incident at a Crimea military installation in a week following the series of explosions that rocked the Russian air base at Novofedorivka last Tuesday, destroying at least eight Russian military aircrafts, killing one person, and injuring 14 other people.

Also on Tuesday, Russia’s Federal Security Service informed that Ukrainian saboteurs blew up the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant’s high-voltage power lines which led to a disruption of the technological process of the nuclear power plant located in the Kursk Region, which borders eastern Ukraine.

The targeted transmission towers – 6 of them – transmit power from Kursk Nuclear Power Plant to industrial sites, transportation systems, and other crucial infrastructure. According to FSB, which has launched a terrorism investigation and a search for the culprits, two previous attempts to blow up power lines were made earlier this month on Aug. 4 and Aug. 9.