Ukraine war latest: Part of key bridge linking Crimea and Russia collapses after major explosion
Kerch #Kerch
The Kerch bridge between Crimea and mainland Russia has been partially destroyed in an apparent Ukrainian strike.
An explosion on the rail section of the bridge was reported early on Saturday morning.
Footage from the scene later showed a train of oil tanker wagons ablaze, and one lane of the parallel road bridge collapsed into the sea.
In one video a driver parked near the blaze was heard saying on the phone: “Tolya, I’ll be late. Briefly, the bridge is on fire.”
No casualties were immediately reported.
A Russian-appointed local official said a fire had broken out on the oil train and that it was being extinguished.
Vladimir Putin ordered construction of a bridge across the strait of Kerch following the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
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08:49 AM Russia blames truck bomb
Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee says a truck bomb caused seven railway cars carrying fuel to catch fire, resulting in a “partial collapse of two sections of the bridge.” The committee didn’t immediately apportion blame.
The Crimean Peninsula holds symbolic value for Russia and is key to sustaining its military operations in the south. If the bridge is made inoperable, it would make it significantly more challenging to ferry supplies to the peninsula.
While Russia seized the areas north of Crimea early during the invasion and built a land corridor to it along the Sea of Azov, Ukraine is pressing a counteroffensive to reclaim them.
Russia has opened a criminal probe into the blast on the Crimea bridge linking Moscow-annexed Crimea to the mainland.
Russia’s investigative committee said it had “initiated a criminal case in connection with the incident on the Crimean bridge,” adding that “a truck was blown up.”
08:29 AM Latest update from the MoD before the bridge fire 08:15 AM Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant disconnected due to shelling, says Energoatom
The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant lost its connection to external power supply early on Saturday as a result of shelling, Ukraine’s state nuclear company Energoatom said, blaming Russia.
Energoatom said the plant was now getting power to cover its own needs from its backup diesel generators.
“The diesel generators started automatically. The available supplies of diesel fuel for their operation in this mode will be enough for 10 days,” the company wrote on Telegram.
08:06 AM ‘Ukrainian vandals’ responsible for bridge fire, says head of Crimea parliament
The head of the Russian-installed regional parliament in Crimea, Vladimir Konstantinov, has blamed the bridge fire on “Ukrainian vandals”.
Russia had maintained the bridge was safe despite the fighting in Ukraine but had threatened Kyiv with reprisals if it was attacked.
If it is established that Ukraine was behind the blast, it is a matter of serious concern for Moscow as the bridge is far from the front line.
There have been several explosions at Russian military installations in the Crimean peninsula.
The Kremlin spokesman said Putin had ordered the establishment of a commission to look into the blast.
07:58 AM Russia-backed forces claim gains near Bakhmut in east Ukraine
Russian forces said they had captured ground in Donetsk in east Ukraine, their first claim of new gains since a Kyiv counter-offensive rattled Moscow’s war effort.
Separatist forces in the war-battered Donetsk region said they had retaken a series of villages near the Ukraine-controlled industrial town of Bakhmut, which has been under Russian shelling for weeks.
AFP journalists in the centre of Bakhmut heard the sound of heavy artillery and multiple rocket launch systems near the remains of a smashed bridge over the Bakhmutka river.
“On the territory of the Donetsk People’s Republic, a grouping of troops of the Donetsk and Lugansk republics, with fire support from Russian forces, liberated Otradovka, Veselaya Dolina and Zaitsevo,” separatist forces said on social media.
07:52 AM ‘Everything illegal must be destroyed,’ says Zelensky’s adviser 07:41 AM Motorists filmed the bridge on fire as they tried to cross it 07:37 AM Footage of the blaze 07:28 AM Fire caused by car bomb, says Russian anti-terrorism committee
The huge fire that has broken out on the Crimea bridge caused by a car bomb, reports citing Russia’s national anti-terrorism committee said Saturday.
“Today at 6:07 am (03:07 GMT) on the road traffic side of the Crimean bridge… a car bomb exploded, setting fire to seven oil tankers being carried by rail to Crimea,” the committee was quoted as saying.
07:17 AM Fire erupted after missile strikes
The fire occurred hours after explosions rocked the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv early Saturday, sending towering plumes of smoke into the sky and triggering a series of secondary explosions.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram that the early-morning explosions were the result of missile strikes in the center of the city. He said that the blasts sparked fires at one of the city’s medical institutions and a nonresidential building. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
07:07 AM Moscow says fire breaks out on key Crimean bridge
Moscow authorities confirmed a fire has broken out on a key road and rail bridge linking Crimea to Russia.
“An oil tanker caught fire at the end of a train,” Crimea’s rail service said.
The bridge, which was built on the orders of President Putin, was a key transport link for carrying military equipment to Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine.
06:54 AM Putin marks 70th birthday with little fanfare
Russian President Vladimir Putin marked his 70th birthday with little fanfare and a decree targeting a key Western energy investment, but signs grew that key parts of his Ukraine invasion were unravelling to trigger unprecedented criticism at home.
News programmes made only glancing references to Friday’s event and celebrations were low-key – in contrast to just a week ago, when Putin held a huge concert on Red Square to proclaim the annexation of nearly a fifth of Ukrainian land.
On the world stage, in a clear repudiation of Putin’s record, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Russia’s most prominent human rights group, Memorial, which Moscow shut down at the end of 2021. A Ukrainian human rights group and a jailed campaigner against abuses by the pro-Russian government in Belarus also shared the award.
05:09 AM Todays top stories
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