The 265,000 ton munitions facility was rocked by repeated blasts as explosions from the Ukrainian bombardment lit up the night sky with thousands of nearby residents evacuated
A devastating attack by Ukrainian forces on a massive Russian ammunition arsenal saw thousands of residents evacuated as massive explosions lit up the sky.
The 265,000 ton munitions facility was rocked by repeated blasts under the Ukrainian bombardment as the night sky turned orange from the flames.
Russian ammunition exploded and shot into the air through the night and into the morning, sparking evacuation orders for thousands of locals in nearby villages in the Volgograd region.
A second Ukrainian attack saw forces hit a major Russian plant making missile guidance systems in the Tambov region, triggering explosions and fire at Michurinsk.
The strike on the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate [GRAU] ammunition storage base has been described as a major blow to Vladimir Putin.
The facility was used to store missiles and artillery weapons, spectacular footage showed huge explosions at the base.
Regional governor Andrey Bocharov said: “In order to ensure the safety of the civilian population from the threat of detonation during fire extinguishing, an evacuation of the population of the nearby settlement of Kotluban has been announced and is being carried out.
“Buses have been prepared and sent for the evacuation. Civil defence shelters have been set up.”
The Progress Plant in Michurinsk, Tambov region, producing equipment for aviation and missile systems control, sustained huge damage in the strike.
The ammunition facility and missile plant are both military targets. Russia, in contrast, targeted civilians by knocking out power plants, plunging parts of Kyiv into freezing darkness.
Residential districts were damaged by explosions, the Kyiv Post reported. Some 2,600 apartment buildings were cut off from heating supplies by the Russian strikes.
Overnight drone and missile strikes saw energy facilities in Odesa and the Zaporizhzhia region hit by Russian forces.
Ten people were wounded in a strike on a store in Barvinkove in Kharkiv region.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces Air Force said Russia attacked Ukraine with 24 ballistic missiles, with 15 of them shot down.
The only air-launched missile and 197 attack drones out of 219 were shot down.
