One of Russia's oldest oil refineries is on fire in Saratov
On the night of May 31, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a massive attack using strike drones against the aggressor nation’s energy infrastructure.
Strategic facilities in the Saratov and Rostov regions of the Russian Federation were targeted.
Large-scale fires broke out at fuel facilities as a result of the successful strikes.
In Saratov, Russia, a drone alert was declared in the middle of the night, during which a series of powerful explosions were heard.
It later became known that a local oil refinery, owned by Rosneft and one of the oldest in Russia, had been hit.
Roman Busargin, governor of the Saratov region, attempted to conceal the extent of the damage to the industrial giant.
He did not confirm a direct hit on the refinery, stating that only civilian infrastructure facilities could have been damaged.
Despite attempts by local authorities to downplay the consequences of the nighttime attack, they were unable to conceal the true state of affairs. Numerous videos from Saratov residents quickly appeared on social media.
The published footage clearly shows a huge column of black smoke and open flames rising after the refinery was hit.
According to preliminary data, damage to the plant’s key processing facilities has been reported. There is currently no information regarding casualties among personnel or the civilian population.
A similar successful operation using long-range UAVs also took place in the Rostov region. There, a fuel facility located near the Ukrainian border was struck.
The head of the Rostov region, Yuri Slyusar, confirmed the large-scale fire but, as usual, blamed it on debris from downed drones.
He wrote that “due to falling UAV debris” in the Matveyevo-Kurgan district, a fire broke out at a fuel storage facility belonging to a private company.
It is known that this oil depot supplied fuel and lubricants to local agricultural producers.
Due to the high risk of explosion and heavy smoke, rescue workers carried out an emergency evacuation of residents from nearby private homes.
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