Massive blaze at oil depot in Russia’s Krasnodar region destroys fuel tank

This is reported by the operational headquarters of Russia’s Krasnodar region.

They stated that, as of 8:00 a.m. Kyiv time, the fire at the oil depot covered an area of 5,000 square meters.

"At present, the tank that caught fire on March 19 has been completely burned out within the containment area, while the fire continues on a second tank. A total of 471 personnel and 187 pieces of equipment are involved in the firefighting effort," the statement said.

Earlier, the operational headquarters of Krasnodar region reported that the fire area expanded during the night of March 21 due to an explosion and the spread of flames to another storage tank.

"In the process of extinguishing the fire, an explosion of petroleum products and a release of burning oil occurred due to the depressurization of the burning tank," the statement said.

The operational headquarters added that, as a result, three equipment units were reportedly damaged, and two firefighters were injured. They were promptly given first aid on-site and taken to the hospital with minor burns and smoke inhalation. Their lives and health are not in danger.

"The fire spread to another storage tank. As a result, two tanks are currently burning, along with shut-off valves, petroleum products within the containment area around the tanks, and the portion of burning petroleum products ejected beyond the tanks by the explosion. The total fire area has increased to 10,000 square meters," the statement said. It was published at 03:20 a.m. Kyiv time.

A total of 456 personnel and 181 units of equipment are involved in extinguishing the fire.

According to Russia's state propaganda news agency TASS, a highway toward Krasnodar was closed in Stavropol due to the oil depot fire.

• The fire at the oil depot broke out on the night of March 19—according to Russian social media channels, it happened after a drone attack on the city of Kropotkin in the Krasnodar region. As of the evening of March 20, the fire at the oil depot covered an area of 3,750 square meters.