Russia: Drone attack on St. Petersburg

Scene of the incident.

The explosion occurred in the northern city of St. Petersburg and left the facade of a residential building “severely damaged.”

“The incident did not cause any casualties. Balcony windows of two buildings were partially damaged. Residents of the affected apartments were evacuated,” said St. Petersburg Mayor Alexandr Beglov.

Police and emergency workers were working at the scene, he added.

The press service of the St. Petersburg Health Committee reported that six people needed medical help after the incident.

Video from the scene shared on social media showed the area littered with debris. Another video depicts the moment the drone crashed into the building. The sound of an engine can be heard, followed by a loud bang.

Media reports suggest the drone may have been headed towards an oil facility less than 1km away.

Local news outlet 47news.ru also reported that two drones had appeared in the St. Petersburg region, and another may have crashed in Vsevolzhsky, east of the city.

According to RT, St. Petersburg and surrounding areas have recently been targeted in Ukrainian drone attacks, even though the city is located hundreds of kilometers from the front line.

In mid-January, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had intercepted a Ukrainian drone in the area, which local media said was targeting an oil depot in the city.

Ukraine is believed to be targeting Russian oil and gas facilities with small, low-cost UAVs, aiming to disrupt Russia’s oil supplies and hinder Moscow’s operations on the battlefield. Meanwhile, since the winter of 2022, Russia has been using UAVs and missiles to attack Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

Phuong Anh (Source: RT)

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