World Blast at explosives plant in Russia’s Bashkortostan kills three people, governor says

Three people were killed and five injured in a blast at the Avangard explosives plant in the city of Sterlitamak, Bashkortostan region, regional governor Radiy Khabirov said on Saturday via his Telegram channel.

 An explosion at a chemical plant in southern Russia has killed three people, the regional governor said Saturday without giving the cause of the blast.

The Avangard factory, located in the Bashkortostan region’s Sterlitamak, produces weapons and ammunition for Russia’s war in Ukraine, Russian media outlets reported.

Ukrainian drones targeting a major oil refinery hit the same region a month ago.

Bashkortostan’s governor, Radiy Khabirov, said on Telegram on Saturday that “a pretty violent explosion destroyed one of the buildings” at the chemical factory site, killing three women.

He said another five people were wounded and hospitalized, two of them in serious condition.

The factory “carries out an important state-mandated mission” and “handles explosive materials,” Khabirov said.

He said the cause of the blast was being evaluated by experts.

On September 18, Ukrainian drones hit the Bashkortostan oil refinery run by state-controlled giant Gazprom, as part of a Kiev counter-offensive targeting Russian energy revenues used to fund the military.

Forensic experts are investigating the cause of the blast, Khabirov said, denying that it was caused by Ukrainian drone strikes.

The emergency services said on Saturday that they had completed search and rescue operations at the Sterlitamak plant, which had continued throughout the night.

The Avangard plant manufactures industrial explosives and dismantles ammunition.

Since 2022, the plant has been controlled by the Russian state industrial conglomerate Rostec.