Drone strike reportedly targets Russian chemical plant in Tatarstan, causing fire
A drone attack targeted Russia's Kazanorgsintez plant in Kazan, Tatarstan Republic, during an overnight attack on Jan. 14, with drone wreckage causing a fire, several local Telegram channels claimed.
The Telegram channel Vechernaya Kazan wrote that the strike hit a liquified gas storage area, setting gas tanks on fire. Russian authorities confirmed that a fire broke out in the city as a result of the drone strike but claimed that it resulted in no significant damage.
"I went to the scene of a fire that occurred as a result of the drone attack. Emergency services quickly arrived at the scene to extinguish the fire. I heard reports that there were no casualties or serious damage," Tatarstan Republic head Rustam Minnikhanov wrote on his Telegram channel.
Ukrainian authorities have not yet said they were behind the attacks.
The fire occurred about 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) from the Ukrainian border. The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify what caused the fire at the plant.
Videos posted across different channels show a big fire at an industrial site. According to eyewitnesses, drones were heard flying over the village of Osinovo, and then an explosion was heard near the plant. Local authorities have not disclosed further details about the targeted site.
Russia reported a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack across multiple regions overnight, with an industrial facility also purportedly set on fire in Saratov Oblast.
Kazanorgsintez’s plant produces pyrolysis, polyethylene, and polycarbonate.
Ukraine has been targeting Russian plants critical for its war efforts against Ukraine, prioritizing factories related to the oil and chemical industry on its target list.
Olena Goncharova
