Drone attack causes explosion at Russia's largest steel plant
Authorities in the Vologda region have confirmed that a drone struck the territory of the Severstal plant in Cherepovets, reports TASS citing the acting governor, Georgy Filimonov. According to him, there were no injuries.
The press service of the company reported earlier that there had been a "technological incident in the blast furnace operation" at the metallurgical plant, and the circumstances were being investigated. Following the incident, one of the units had to undergo a "previously planned repair."
As reported by the Telegram channel VChK-OGPU, workers at the plant speak of a damage to the blast furnace and allege the Severstal press service is not telling the truth. The local news outlet GorodChe wrote that an explosion was heard at the plant at 5:40 a.m., quoting an individual named Andrey, who claimed to be an employee of the plant:
"Near furnace number four, something hit the ABK 4, blowing out windows in the gallery, in the offices; there's debris and parts of the drone around, including propellers. I was changing in that shower room, we walked past, saw all that. The superiors mentioned the propeller while we stood there. Everything's cordoned off. That's the information for now."
This is the third major incident involving drones attacking facilities associated with the metallurgical industry in Russia, with previous attacks on plants in Lipetsk and Kursk regions.
The Cherepovets Steel Mill is a cornerstone asset of Severstal's Russian Steel division. It comprises four main types of manufacturing processes: coke production and sintering, steelmaking, long products rolling, including pipe production, and flat rolling operations.
This incident marks the third major attack on Russian companies linked to the metallurgical industry by drones. Prior attacks targeted facilities in the Lipetsk and Kursk regions.