The death toll from an explosion in a gunpowder shop at the Elastik weapons factory in Russia’s Ryazan region has risen to 14, Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry has said. Earlier, 11 people were reported dead.
Debris removal is continuing, according to the report. According to the clarified information, 149 people were injured.
The explosion at the enterprise occurred in the morning of 15 August. The shop building collapsed completely, and the debris scattered dozens of metres around. After the explosion there was a strong fire, which was localised in just a few hours.
According to preliminary data, the cause of the explosion could have been a breach of safety procedures for handling hazardous substances in production conditions.
The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation opened a criminal case under the article on violation of industrial safety requirements resulting in the death of two or more persons.
The plant, as of 2021, produces rockets for rocket artillery, various types of aviation weapons and gas generators for submarines, the Russian service of Radio Liberty wrote.
In October 2021, an explosion occurred at the Razryad weapons factory located on the territory of Elastik, then 17 people were killed.