Fire destroys Russian ammo depot in Crimea, as Moscow launches ‘massive attack’ on Odesa

KYIV — A fire broke out at an ammunitions depot at a Russian military training ground in occupied Crimea overnight, closing a major highway, while Moscow’s forces hammered Ukraine with drones and missiles.

The Kremlin-installed head of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov said the Tavrida Highway, the road that connects the major cities on the Russian-occupied peninsula, was closed and 2,200 people were evacuated from the area as a result of the fire, though he didn’t specify a cause.

“There was a fire on a military field. Investigators will find out the reasons,” Aksyonov said, adding that Russian air defenses had shot down 18 drones over Crimea.

Pro-Kremlin military bloggers reported that either Ukrainian-made Grim-2 or Britain’s Storm Shadow long-range missiles could have been responsible for the fire.

Kyiv didn’t claim responsibility for destroying the ammunitions depot, with Andrii Yusov, a representative of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, telling POLITICO: “We can neither confirm nor deny.”

Meanwhile, Russia fired a barrage of 31 missiles and 32 drones at Ukraine overnight, mostly targeting the Odesa region on the Black Sea. Ukrainian Air Defense Forces reported shooting down 14 of the rockets and 23 of the drones, while 14 missiles hit ports and critical infrastructure around Odesa.

Several residential buildings were damaged in the “massive attack” on Odesa, with at least six people, including a 9-year-old boy, requiring medical assistance due to injuries caused by shards of glass and other objects, Oleg Kiper, head of Odesa regional military administration, said in a statement.

According to Kiper, Russia mostly targeted Ukrainian ports for the second night in a row, after the Kremlin withdrew from the Black Sea Grain Initiative on Monday.

“Grain and oil terminals were hit, tanks and loading equipment were damaged, and a fire started. An industrial facility in Odesa district is hit, injuring a civilian employee and damaging two warehouses — one [storing] tobacco and the other fireworks. Firefighters are extinguishing a fire with an area of more than 3,000 square meters,” Kiper said.