Russia's Sea of ​​Azov oil refinery catches fire after drone strike – video

Videos circulating on social media show oil storage tanks engulfed in flames after a drone strike in the city of Azov in Russia's Rostov region.

The governor of the South Rostov region, Vasily Golubev, said in a telegram that the fire was caused by a drone strike. There were no casualties and “there was no risk of the fire spreading to other facilities or posing a threat to residents,” he said.

Several Telegram channels and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia Posted video The incident ministry said a fuel tank caught fire and spread over an “area of ​​5,000 cubic meters”.

context

Kiev has generally refrained from claiming responsibility for attacks on Russian territory. But earlier this year, Ukraine stepped up attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure, targeting oil refineries and hubs with its drones as part of a campaign to disrupt gasoline production, which fuels President Vladimir Putin's war economy.

what do we know

“As a result of a drone strike, an oil product tank in Azov caught fire. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties,” Golubev said in a telegram.

Russia's Emergencies Ministry said dozens of firefighters were working to put out the blaze.

The Baja Telegram channel, linked to Russia's security services, reported about five explosions before the fire broke out, citing local residents.

Russia's Defense Ministry did not report a drone strike in the Rostov region on the border with Ukraine.

The city of Azov is located about 16 kilometers (9.9 mi) from the Sea of ​​Azov.

The latest incident comes days after a drone attack on an oil refinery in Golubev Novoshakhtinsk affected an area of ​​100 square meters (about 1,100 square feet).

This marks the third attack on an oil refinery this year. Ukrainian drones also attacked the facility in March and April.

According to Ukrainian military intelligence, at least 13 successful attacks have been carried out on Russian oil refineries during the conflict so far, the country's largest target. Independent online Russian newspaper The Moscow Times reported on June 6 that at least five Russian refineries had been attacked by drones in the past month.

Pentagon intelligence estimated last month that the latest attacks disrupted at least 14 percent of Russia's oil refinery capacity.

View

Multiple social media users shared footage of the incident, which showed huge plumes of black smoke billowing into the air and firefighters trying to put out the blaze.

“Last night an unknown drone attacked an oil depot in the city of Azov (Rostov Region, Russia). After the attack, a petroleum product tank caught fire.” said X, formerly Twitter, user Dimitri, from War Translated, an independent project that translates war-related materials.

“A large number of people and vehicles had to be deployed to control the fire.”

“The city of #Azov is about 40 kilometers by road southwest of the regional capital #Rostov-on-Don,” Tim White, journalist and documentary maker, wrote “Oil depot fire so big and seen by many, #Russia isn't even trying to hide it.”

He added: “Here's a great video from their own fire service.”

What next?

Russian oil facilities have been regularly attacked since January by Kiev, which maintains they are legitimate targets, and such attacks are likely to continue.

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanyshina said in March that Russian oil refineries were legitimate military targets in the war.

Have a tip on a world news story that Newsweek should cover? Do you have questions about the Russia-Ukraine war? Let us know via worldnews@newsweek.com.