Russian authorities reported Thursday an explosion in the city of Belgorod near the border with Ukraine, saying the blast left a huge crater in the city centre.
"An explosion took place. According to preliminary information, there are no victims," Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, said on the Telegram messaging app. He added that a crater some 20 meters wide (65 feet) had appeared in the city centre.
Video footage from the site showed piles of concrete on the street, several damaged cars and a building with broken windows. One shot showed what appeared to be car upside down on the roof of a store.
Belgorod is one of several southern Russian regions where targets such as fuel and ammunition stores have been rocked by explosions since the start of what Moscow calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
