At least 3 Russian soldiers are dead and 16 injured following the accidental detonation of a grenade at a military facility in Russia’s Belgorod region. Per Business Insider, it happened in a village community center that was being used not only for ammunition storage but also a dormitory. Russian state news outlet TASS blamed the disaster on "careless handling of ammunition." Another Russian source on Telegram specified that a senior sergeant serving as platoon commander accidentally detonated an RGD-5 grenade in an ammo storage room, sparking an explosion and a fire that covered nearly 5,000 square feet.
Eight personnel were still missing as of Sunday, according to local emergency services, which also noted in a statement that the "culprit” responsible for the detonation was among those hospitalized. According to Reuters, all the dead and injured were conscripts recently mobilized to fight in Ukraine. As MSN reports, it’s not the first time something like this has happened in Belgorod, a border region and staging ground for Russian troops and supplies. Explosions were reported in 2022 at multiple ammo and fuel dumps in the area; Russia blamed Ukrainian strikes, which Ukraine has neither confirmed nor denied. In addition, 11 Russian soldiers were killed in October when 2 fellow conscripts opened fire at a military firing range. (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)
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