Explosions in Russia's Sochi: Airport shut down, people evacuated from beaches
Illustrative photo: Explosions heard in Sochi, Russia, airport closed (flickr com)
On the afternoon of August 8, air raid alerts were declared in Sochi and other southern Russian cities. People are being evacuated from beaches, and the airport has restricted arrivals and departures, Russian Telegram channels report.
According to Russian monitoring channels, the air raid alert was issued in Sochi, Adler, and Tuapse. Alerts are also sounding in the Bryansk, Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod, and Ryazan regions. According to their data, air defense systems are allegedly operating and shooting down drones over the sea in the Krasnodar region.
Temporary restrictions have been imposed at Sochi Airport on the arrival and departure of aircraft. Before this, similar restrictions were also introduced at Gelendzhik Airport.
Sochi Mayor Andrei Proshunin stated on Telegram that the city's air defense system is actively operating. He urged residents, especially those living near the coast, not to go outside and to stay in windowless indoor areas.
Videos of people being evacuated from beaches have appeared on social media.
In addition, due to the drone threat, the Psou checkpoint on the border with the unrecognized republic of Abkhazia has been temporarily closed.
Drone attacks on Russia
On the night of August 3, unknown strike drones attacked Sochi and the Adler district, as well as Voronezh and Kstovo in the Nizhny Novgorod region.
The attacks caused a fire at an oil depot in the Adler district.
The previous attack on the Krasnodar region occurred on the night of July 24. At that time, drones struck an oil depot near Sochi Airport, where a fire also broke out following the impact.
On the night of July 25, a drone attack paralyzed operations at eight Russian airports, including Sochi's.
