Five days later: Russia claims to extinguish fire at oil depot in Engels
Photo: Russia reports on the elimination of the fire at the oil depot in Engels (Getty Images)
In the Russian city of Engels (Saratov region) today, December 13, open flames at an oil depot burning for five days were extinguished. The facility caught fire after a drone strike on January 8, according to the governor of the Saratov region, Roman Busargin.
As usual, in his statements regarding the fire incident in Engels, the Russian official avoided specifying that the burning facility was the local Kombinat Kristal oil depot. Instead, the governor referred to it as an "industrial enterprise."
"At an industrial enterprise in Engels, it was possible to extinguish open flames during the night," Busargin stated.
The Saratov governor also expressed gratitude to "all employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, rescuers, and other specialists working on-site around the clock."
Meanwhile, the Russian official added that work continues at the site damaged by the drone strike.
Strike on oil depot in Engels
As previously reported, explosions were heard in the Russian city of Engels during the night of January 8. Local authorities and residents mentioned a drone attack and the operation of air defense systems.
At that time, the governor of the Saratov region acknowledged that a fire had broken out at the oil depot in the Engels area during the air raid. According to him, the fire started because drone debris had fallen on this "industrial enterprise."
On the same day, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the strike on the oil depot in Engels. Ukrainian military clarified that the attacked site was the Kombinat Kristal oil storage facility.
This oil depot supplied fuel to the military airfield Engels-2, which hosts the enemy's strategic aviation, particularly the Tu-95MS and Tu-160 bombers.
In a report published on January 13, the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) cited a statement from a Russian insider source, claiming that the fire at the oil depot in Engels destroyed three fuel tanks containing 120,000 cubic meters of fuel and damaged six additional fuel tanks.
