Achinsk: At least 12 people were injured and one missing after powerful explosions on Monday rocked a military depot in Siberia. Over 16,500 people left their homes.
A fire erupted at an ammunition depot near the city of Achinsk in eastern Siberia's Krasnoyarsk region, triggering massive blasts that continued for about 16 hours. The explosions ended early on Tuesday.
Moscow used 10 heavy-lift transport planes and eight helicopters to drop water on the depot.
The emergency ministry said that 9,533 people have been evacuated from the area of 20 kilometers around the depot and about 7,000 fled on their own as massive explosions sent black smoke high into the skies.
Authorities suspended air traffic within 30 kilometers of the munitions site, halted train movement and blocked highways around the area.
Officials didn't immediately announce the cause of the fire, the latest in a series of blazes at Russian military arsenals over the past few years.
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