Explosions rock occupied Crimea as drone strikes spark fires near Kerch and Krasnodar ports

A series of explosions were reported overnight across several areas of Russian-occupied Crimea, while drone strikes triggered fires near the port of Kerch and Russia’s Port Kavkaz in the Krasnodar region.

Explosions were reported in Kerch, Bakhchisarai, Sevastopol, Simferopol, as well as the Nyzhnohirskyi, Krasnohvardiiske and Krasnoperekopsk districts. Amid the aerial threat, Russian authorities temporarily suspended traffic on the Kerch Bridge.

According to reports, the drone attack caused a large fire near the port of Kerch, with a local fuel terminal believed to have been damaged.

A separate fire also broke out at Port Kavkaz on the Russian side of the Kerch Strait in Krasnodar Krai. Preliminary reports indicate that potential targets included an oil transshipment facility and an area used for the accumulation and staging of cargo before ferry loading.

The attacks followed Ukrainian drone strikes carried out overnight on June 20 against four gas compressor stations in occupied Crimea. According to Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, the facilities targeted were located in Zhuravlovka, Aromatne, Kliuchi and Lokhovka.

Neither Ukrainian nor Russian authorities have yet provided a full assessment of the damage caused by the latest attacks.