Russian official claims fire in military facility in Russia's Stavropol Krai

Head of Georgiyevsk district in Russia's Stavropol Krai Andrey Zaytsev claimed on Aug. 9 that a fire had erupted in a military facility in the city of Georgiyevsk.

"Strong smoke was observed on the territory of a military facility on Lermontov Street in Georgiyevsk – a fire broke out in a clothes warehouse with an area of ​​300 square meters," Zaytsev wrote on his Telegram channel at around 6:30 p.m. local time.

Less than an hour later, the official claimed that the fire had been put out, adding that there were no causalities.

"A possible cause of the spontaneous combustion was the high air temperature," he said.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claim.

A video began circulating on Russian Telegram channels showing fire and large smoke clouds rising over a building.

The town of Georgiyevsk has around 70,000 residents and lies over 600 kilometers southeast of Ukraine's border in Donetsk Oblast.

Earlier on Aug. 9, Russian media reported an explosion at an industrial plant in the town of Sergiev Posad northeast of Moscow. The factory develops and manufactures optical and optoelectrical devices for the military and law enforcement.

The explosion comes after weeks of drone attacks on Russia, including Moscow.

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On the morning of Aug. 4, the residents of the Russian city of Novorossiysk woke to a 112-meter-long Navy ship being towed back to port after it was hit by a drone attack on the Black Sea overnight. While the Russian Defense Ministry claimed there were no casualties or damage,

The Kyiv IndependentElsa Court