A Russian military plane crashes in a residential area near the border with Ukraine. Huge explosions in the city of Yeisk can be seen on videos on social networks. A block of flats is on fire.
A military plane crashed over a residential area in the Russian city of Yeisk near the Ukrainian border. According to media reports, the pilot catapulted himself out of the machine with an ejection seat. Huge explosions can be seen on the videos on social networks. The authorities confirmed to the state news agency "Interfax" that a Sukhoi-34 plane crashed. No information has yet been given on the number of victims.
In a first statement, the Russian Defense Ministry said the plane crashed shortly after takeoff from a military airfield, according to the Ria Novosti news agency. The machine crashed into the courtyard of a residential complex, and the plane's fuel caught fire. The cause of the crash was the fire in one of the engines during takeoff, the ministry said, citing the pilots who were able to save themselves. According to the ministry, it was a training flight.
According to media reports, the Su-34 was loaded with weapons. The fire brigade has not been able to contain the fire in the block of flats. At least 15 apartments were damaged by the fire, wrote Telegram channel "112".
Yeysk is located in the Krasnodar Territory on the shore of the Azov Sea. The city has almost 90,000 inhabitants. On the opposite bank, about 70 kilometers away, is the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which suffered massive destruction in the first months of the war. Thousands of people died in the siege of the city.
