Russia’s Krasnodar Krai territory came under a massive drone strike early Monday morning, March 16, according to the region’s operational headquarters.
Initial reports of explosions near a local oil depot appeared on Telegram channels around 2 a.m. Residents of Labinsk shared videos on social media showing the moment of impact and the massive fire that followed in the city’s industrial zone.
The Krasnodar Krai territory is considered a strategic logistics hub for the Russian army. Oil depots in the region serve as “gas stations” for Russian troops fighting in southern Ukraine.
Disabling such facilities can significantly complicate the refueling of military vehicles and aircraft, potentially creating a “fuel famine” directly on the front line.
The regional operations headquarters later confirmed the incident but said the blaze was caused by “falling debris from a downed UAV.”
“In the industrial zone of Labinsk, a fire broke out on the territory of an oil depot as a result of a UAV attack. According to preliminary information, there are no casualties,” the statement said.
Four crews, personnel from fire and rescue units, and specialists from the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for Krasnodar Krai were involved in extinguishing the fire, it added.
Open flames were observed at the oil depot, and a large column of black smoke was visible several kilometers from the scene.
The Ukrainian side has not commented on its possible involvement in the attack.
According to the news outlet The Moscow Times, the Russian capital has faced a record drone attack since the beginning of the war.
The report says Ukrainian forces have been carrying out a massive assault on Moscow for two days. Overnight, 40 drones were shot down while approaching the capital, and 119 more were intercepted over the weekend, according to updates from Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
The attack reportedly began after midday on March 14, with posts about the “destruction” of drones appearing almost continuously on the mayor’s Telegram channel.
The most recent update was published around 9:00 a.m. on Monday, March 16. According to Sobyanin, over the past two days “air defense forces destroyed approximately 250 drones directly on approach to Moscow and on the second line of approach” to the city.
“This is a record since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” The Moscow Times wrote.
The previous largest attack occurred on March 11, 2025, when 91 drones were reportedly shot down near the capital, killing three people in the Moscow region.
Eyewitnesses reported explosions overnight in the areas of Odintsovo, Domodedovo, and Podolsk. Drones were also spotted in Moscow’s Troitsky Administrative District, as well as in Istra, Mozhaisk, Naro-Fominsk, Solnechnogorsk, and Dubna.
Russia’s aviation authority, Rosaviatsiya, imposed flight restrictions at Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo, Zhukovsky, and Vnukovo airports. Only Vnukovo is currently operating normally, while the others are receiving and dispatching flights “in coordination with the relevant authorities,” citing flight safety concerns.
However, neither the mayor nor Russia’s Defense Ministry has reported any damage from the latest strikes.
According to the Telegram outlet Shot, FP-1 drones developed by the Ukrainian company Fire Point were used in the attacks. The drones were reportedly launched in waves, or “flocks,” of eight to ten units.
Based on the stated specifications, each drone can carry up to 60 kilograms of explosives and has a range of up to 1,400 kilometers. Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the reported attack on Moscow.
Meanwhile, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that air defenses destroyed 145 Ukrainian drones overnight. The largest number – 53 – were reportedly intercepted over Moscow Oblast, including 46 drones heading toward the capital.
Another 38 drones were shot down over the Bryansk Region, while only one drone was reportedly destroyed over Krasnodar Krai.
On Sunday morning, March 15, the Russian Defense Ministry said that 170 drones had been launched across Russia, affecting 13 regions.
In Krasnodar Territory, a separate fire broke out at an oil depot near Tikhoretsk, reportedly caused by falling drone debris, according to the operational headquarters. Drone fragments also damaged two high-voltage power lines.
The oil depot had already been attacked on March 12. It forms part of the Transneft oil hub and the Tikhoretsk oil hub – one of the largest oil transshipment centers in southern Russia.
Meanwhile, Vyacheslav Gladkov said Ukraine launched missile strikes on the Belgorod Region. According to him, energy infrastructure facilities sustained “serious damage,” causing outages of electricity, water, and heating in parts of the region.
Local Telegram channels reported that the Luch Thermal Power Plant and several other energy facilities were hit.