Explosions and fire at Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant, Russia, February 24 night

Lipetsk, Russia (Svidomi) — On the night of February 24, explosions were heard near the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant in Russia. A fire broke out in one of the plant's production facilities, according to the governor of the Lipetsk region.

Lipetsk Region Governor Igor Artamonov confirmed the fire in one of the plant's facilities.

He says Russian security services are verifying information that the plant was attacked by a drone. He added that the fire was extinguished and there were no injuries.

According to the Russian Telegram channel Ostorozno, novosti (Beware, News), locals heard three explosions before the fire broke out. They say the fire broke out in the sintering and ore preparation unit. However, the Russian Telegram channel Baza says a fire is at an open coal plant's warehouse.

The Russian Ministry of Defence reported the operation of Russian air defence on the night of February 24. The Russians allegedly intercepted two Ukrainian drones over the Lipetsk region, one over the Kursk region, and another over the Tula region.

Some Ukrainian media outlets, including NV, hromadske, and Suspilne report that the attack on the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant was a special operation by the Security Service of Ukraine and the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine.

"This is one of the largest metallurgical plants in Russia. It works for the Russian military-industrial complex and fulfils numerous government orders. Raw materials from this enterprise are used to manufacture Russian missiles, artillery, and drones. Therefore, it is a legitimate target for Ukraine," the source said in a comment to journalists.

The plant is located in the Russian city of Lipetsk, 508 km from Moscow.

Ukraine has not officially commented on the events.

It will be recalled that on February 17, a drone manufacturing workshop caught fire in the Russian city of Izhevsk