Fire Breaks Out at Major Russian Oil Refinery: "Not a Ukrainian Drone Attack"

Fire Breaks Out at Yaroslavl Refinery; No Casualties Reported
Governor Calls Incident "Man-Made," Stresses No Link to Ukraine
Russian Drones Shot Down, Fires Erupt in the Southwest on Same Day

A fire broke out at a large oil refinery located in Yaroslavl Oblast, in northeastern Russia. As Ukraine has recently carried out a series of drone attacks on oil and energy facilities within Russian territory, local residents have grown increasingly anxious. However, local authorities emphasized that this fire was not related to any drone activity.

According to Interfax News Agency on October 1 (local time), the Yaroslavl Emergency Department is currently working to extinguish the fire. Mikhail Evraev, Governor of Yaroslavl Oblast, stated via Telegram, "A fire occurred at the refinery today, but it is not connected to any enemy drone attacks."

On January 22 last year, the Ukrainian military attacked the Makiivka substation in the Donetsk People's Republic occupied by Russia, sending flames and black smoke billowing into the sky. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Another foreign media outlet reported that this facility is one of Russia's major oil refineries. Governor Evraev reiterated, "There was no Ukrainian drone attack." He mentioned that the fire was "man-made," but did not specify the exact cause. RIA Novosti, citing sources, reported that the fire was related to equipment issues, that refinery operations were not disrupted, and that there were no casualties.

Meanwhile, on the same day, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that it had shot down 20 Ukrainian drones over the regions of Belgorod, Rostov, Saratov, and Voronezh. In Rostov Oblast, a downed drone crashed onto the roof of an industrial facility, causing a fire. Authorities explained that the fire was quickly extinguished and that there were no casualties.