Huge mushroom cloud blast rips through ‘indestructible’ Russian arms depot in one of Ukraine’s biggest kamikaze drone attacks of the war

A huge mushroom cloud hung high over an “indestructible” weapons depot in Russia as Ukraine carried out a devastating kamikaze drone attack overnight.

Shocking images showed the extent of the damage as an explosion destroyed two missile and munitions centres some 380 kilometres (235 miles) west of Moscow.

Following the initial attacks, there were repeated fireball explosions, costing Putin tens of millions of pounds worth of equipment that he could have used for his war effort in Ukraine.

A mass evacuation of residents of Toropets and nearby villages began this morning after storage facilities containing 30,000 tons of ammunition were hit.

Russia claimed to have destroyed 54 drones launched toward five western Russian regions early Wednesday. No information was given on casualties.

Russian state media reported that the site was a major ammunition hub used for the war.

Fires spread after kamikaze drones hit missile and ammunition site in Toropets

According to a 2018 report by the state news agency RIA, Russia was building an arsenal to store missiles, ammunition and explosives in Toropets, a 1,000-year-old town with a population of just over 11,000.

After completion, Putin’s Deputy Defense Minister General Dmitry Bulgakov promised that “it will protect missiles and ammunition from external impacts and ensure proper maintenance. It is explosion- and fire-proof.”

Bulgakov has since been arrested as part of a purge of top Defense Ministry officials by Putin amid a range of corruption allegations.

NASA satellites picked up several sources coming from the site early Wednesday morning and earthquake monitoring stations recorded what sensors thought was a small earthquake in the area.

Firefighters were trying to control the fire, Tver Region Governor Igor Rudenya said in a Telegram message, but did not say what was burning.

He initially wrote: ‘Air defense forces continue to report a massive drone attack in the skies above [Toropets].

Later, his regional government stated that “to ensure the safety of residents, the governor … decided to partially evacuate the population from the area where the air defense forces are operating and the fire is located.”

Schools and kindergartens in the area were also forced to close today due to ongoing explosions and toxic smoke.

Residents of the city complained that there were no warnings of approaching kamikaze drones.

In addition to the main fire after the mushroom cloud explosion, there were several more fires after the drone strike, according to satellite data and local images. The fires then spread.

Several depots with a capacity of 240 tons of rockets, ammunition and explosives were built in Toropets.

Ukrainian war journalist Denis Kazansky said: ‘The scale of the detonation of the warehouse in the Tver region is impressive…

‘The 107th arsenal of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Russian Federation is on fire.’

The depots “contain rockets for MLRS, mortar mines and anti-aircraft missiles,” he said. “In total, the volume of stockpiles is estimated at 30,000 tons.”

It is possible that North Korean and Iranian missiles were among the exploded and burned missiles.

Bulgakov boasted that the arsenal will “hide rockets, ammunition and explosives in concrete, quickly assembled warehouses.”

‘It will reduce the burden on existing facilities, minimize the terrorist threat and improve the environment in the storage area’.

Kindergartens were forced to remain closed on Wednesday as toxic smoke plumes hung over the city

Residents of the city complained that there were no warnings about approaching kamikaze drones

Firefighters were trying to get the fire under control, the regional governor admitted on Wednesday

The facility is located approximately 468 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

As is customary with such attacks, Russian officials explained the explosions as the result of falling drone debris after anti-aircraft fire hit approaching UAVs.

In reality, these are mostly direct hits on Ukraine, which evade air defenses.

Russian officials rarely disclose the full extent of the damage caused by the Ukrainian attacks.

As Ukraine has ramped up domestic production of drones over the past two years, attacks on Russian territory have also increased.

The largest drone attack ever in Ukraine hit the Russian capital in September, killing at least one person, destroying homes and paralyzing air traffic at Moscow airports.