You're reading: Huge ammunition explosion rocks Russian city

MOSCOW - An explosion at a weapons disposal site in central Russia on Tuesday blew windows shut in a city 30 kilometres away but preliminary reports indicated no one was hurt, according to the government and witnesses.

Some 4,000 tonnes of ammunition accidentally detonated as it
was being unloaded by soldiers at the site, near the city of
Orenbourg, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement,
adding that it was investigating possible negligence.

There were no casualties, according to preliminary
information, the Ministry of Emergencies said. Authorities
evacuated three villages and declared a state of emergency, the
ministry said.

Television footage taken from the centre of Orenbourg showed
a white mushroom cloud billowing from the site some 30
kilometres away. Witnesses said the blast had blown shut windows
in the industrial city, which is about 1,500 kilometres east of
Moscow.

Explosions at sites to store or dispose of ammunition have
plagued the Russian army, accused by critics of negligence or
lax compliance with regulations more than 20 years after the
fall of the Soviet Union. An explosion at an ammunition disposal
site in central Russia killed six soldiers and injured four on
May 2.