Over 60 People Seek Medical Help Following Munitions Depot Fire In Ukraine - Authorities

More than 60 people sought medical assistance after they felt sick due to smoke caused by a fire at an ammunition depot in Ukraine's Chernihiv region, the regional administration said on Tuesday.

KIEV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th October, 2018) More than 60 people sought medical assistance after they felt sick due to smoke caused by a fire at an ammunition depot in Ukraine's Chernihiv region, the regional administration said on Tuesday.

Early on Tuesday, the blast occurred at the ammunition depot located near the settlement of Ichnya in the Chernihiv region. According to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the explosion intensity was one-two blasts per second, and with no injuries or casualties reported. According to the Ukrainian media, the ammunition depot is one of the largest in the country, occupying 682 hectares (1,685 acres) of land. The Military Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine launched an investigation into the incident.

"Sixty-three people asked for medical assistance due to sickness caused by smoke," the statement read.

At the same time, the authorities noted that almost 19,000 local residents within a 16-kilometer (10-mile) radius were subject to evacuation.

Over the past three years, fires at military depots have repeatedly occurred in Ukraine. On March 23, 2017, a fire broke out at an ammunition depot in the city of Balakliia in the Kharkiv region. One person was killed, another five injured. After the fire, it was decided to clear the depot from ammunition. In early May, another fire started at the same depot, which was caused by dry grass which was set ablaze during the disposal of shell debris. Also in May, an explosion occurred at an ammunition depot near the village of Staraya Nikolaevka in the Donetsk region.

On September 26, 2017, a fire started at an ammunition depot in Kalinovka, Vinnytsia region. More than 30,000 people were evacuated from Kalinovka and the surrounding villages, two were injured. Media reported that missiles of Smerch, Uragan and Grad missile launchers were stored in the warehouse. About one-third of the depot's munitions were destroyed in the fire.