Russian proxy in Crimea claims fire at military facility

Russia's proxy head in Crimea Sergey Aksyonov claimed that fire erupted at a military facility in the Kirovske district on the occupied peninsula on July 19.

According to Akysonov, the traffic on the Tavrida highway has been blocked and some 2,000 residents of four settlements near the affected object are to be evacuated.

Although the Russia-installed proxy did not specify the cause of the fire, the Crimean Wind Telegram channel reported an explosion at a Staryi Krym military facility at 6:54 a.m.

"Subscribers report that the blast wave was felt in Feodosia, car alarms went off in some places," the channel wrote while sharing the footage of the explosion.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claim.

Since August 2022, explosions and fires have regularly been reported on the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula. Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly vowed to return Crimea to Ukraine, occupied by Russia since 2014.

On July 18, Aksyonov claimed that local air defenses eliminated 28 drones attacking the peninsula.

Explosions reported at Crimean Bridge, Russia blames Ukraine

Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack against the Crimean Bridge, which connects the occupied peninsula with Russia’s Krasnodar Oblast, on July 17.

The Kyiv IndependentMartin Fornusek