Drone attack leaves military airfield near Lipetsk in flames
A blaze broke out at a military airfield after a reported drone attack near Russia’s Lipetsk in the early hours of Friday, August 9.
That’s according to Current Time, Ukrinform reports.
"Fire at the military airfield," reads the alert by the regional service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
According to Astra, an ammunition warehouse likely caught fire after the drone attack targeting the airfield.
The governor of the region, Ihor Artamanov, never mentioned the fire at the airfield in his morning updates, only reporting a massive drone attack.
Explosive items detonated "far from civil buildings."
To eliminate the consequences of the detonation, a state of emergency was introduced in the Lipetsk municipal district and traffic was suspended in the area.
"In order to ensure the safety of residents, a decision was made to evacuate the settlements of Koptsevie khutory, Fedorvka, Yakovlevka, and Tinkovka. Temporary accommodation and transport are being prepared. Residents of these settlements must follow the instructions of emergency services," he wrote.
Over 400 households located by the airfield fall into the evacuation zone.
As a result of the UAV strike, six people were injured.
An energy infrastructure facility was also damaged. Some districts in Lipetsk were briefly in blackout before power supplies were restored.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claims 75 drones have been intercepted, including 26 over Belgorod region, 19 over Lipetsk region, seven over Kursk region, five over Bryansk region, four over Voronezh region, and another one over Orel region.
As Ukrinform wrote earlier, local authorities in Russia’s Lipetsk and Belgorod regions reported drone attacks overnight Friday.