A ‘mystery explosion’ has rocked a munitions depot in Russia’s Kirzhach district (Vladimir region) outside of Moscow on Wednesday, resulting in a state of emergency being declared for the area, and large-scale evacuations from nearby villages, as emergency crews scramble to the scene.
Widely circulating social media videos show a sizeable mushroom cloud over the area, with an early casualty assessment ongoing. “Massive explosions have been reported on Tuesday near the town of Kirzhach in Russia’s Vladimir Region, some 75 km northeast of Moscow,” reports Russian state media. One dramatic video showed the following:
Local authorities in Russia’s Vladimir region set up a hotline for complaints and legal assistance after a blast sent a mushroom-shaped cloud into the sky
Officials say all emergency services are responding to the incident https://t.co/SWJ2VATyho pic.twitter.com/8qGCj1FI3c
— RT (@RT_com) April 22, 2025
“The blasts are said to have taken place at a munitions depot. Local authorities have announced a state of emergency in the district and blocked the roads leading to the area,” RT writes.
The explosions happened at around 3:30pm local time, and eyewitness reported a series of explosions – the aftermath which could be viewed from several miles away.
“A temporary accommodation center which has been established in a local school has already received about 100 people, including children and elderly citizens, a representative of the facility has told TASS,” the Russian English-language media report continues.
The facility also reportedly stores missiles for the Russian armed forces. This is not the first time a mysterious ‘accident’ has befallen the site, since the Ukraine war started.
Below is the initial report from The Wall Street Journal’s Chief Foreign Affairs correspondent…
One of Russia’s main artillery ammunition and missile storage areas, the 51st GRAU in the Vladimir region not far from Moscow, is combusting. pic.twitter.com/zp8mSHPMmg
— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) April 22, 2025
Immediate suspicion is likely to fall on Ukrainian intelligence services and their CIA backers, given this fits the familiar pattern of sabotage operations which have been semi-regular over the past couple years.
Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Andrey Bulyga is being dispatched to the scene to oversee an investigation into the causes of the event, and to assess casualties and damage.
There have been a spate of mystery fires inside Russia, particularly targeting defense and energy sector buildings. To some extent, both Ukrainian and Russian intelligence services are likely waging intensified sabotage campaigns against the other at this point.
Last year, Anne Keast-Butler, head of the UK’s GCHQ, or signals intelligence operations (which is the equivalent of America’s NSA), warned in a speech that President Putin was plotting “physical attacks” against Western targets.
The GCHQ director claimed at the time that Moscow is busy “nurturing and inspiring” groups of cyber attackers, and is even “in some cases seemingly coordinating physical attacks against the West.”
In many cases Russian authorities have downplayed these incidents, often choosing to describe them as the result of industrial accidents; however these ‘accidents’ have come in unusually high numbers in recent years amid war in Ukraine…
“The reason — safety violations.” The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed a fire and ammunition detonation at a military base in Vladimir region
According to the ministry, the incident was caused by a “fire” due to safety protocol violations.
The 51st Arsenal of the Main Missile… pic.twitter.com/vKCffTzXcq
— ASTRA (@ASTRA_PRESS) April 22, 2025
Last year, an Ikea in Lithuania’s capital went up in flames, and authorities just last month pinned it on Russian intelligence or saboteurs after a lengthy investigation. The fire, which targeted the Swedish retailer store in Vilnius on the May 9, 2024, resulted in no casualties. Interestingly, the two prime suspects taken into custody were actually Ukrainian citizens.
“It has been established that through a series of intermediaries… the organizers of these crimes are in Russia and this is connected to military intelligence and security forces,” the Lithuanian prosecutor’s office said, describing a ‘destabilization’ campaign in Europe.
Loading…
