Warplane crashes into Russian apartment block killing at least 13 people
At least 13 people have died after a Russian warplane crashed into an apartment block in a Russian city.
A Su-34 bomber came down in the southern port city of Yeysk after one of its engines caught fire during takeoff for a training mission, the Russian Defence Ministry said.
It said both crew members had ejected, but the plane crashed into a residential area, causing a fire as tons of fuel exploded on impact.
Authorities said 13 residents, including three children, were found dead after hours of searching through debris of the building.
Another 19 people were hospitalised with injuries.
Footage posted on Russian messaging app channels showed a plane exploding in a huge fireball, as the building was engulfed by flames.
Vice governor of the region, Anna Menkova, said three of the four victims died when they jumped from the upper floors of the nine-story building in an attempt to escape the flames, according to the RIA-Novosti news agency.
More than 500 residents were evacuated and provided with temporary accommodation.
The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin was informed about the crash and dispatched the ministers of health and emergencies along with the local governor to the site.
Yeysk, a city of 90,000, is home to a big Russian air base.
The Su-34 is a supersonic twin-engine bomber with sophisticated sensors and weapons that has been a key strike component of the Russian air force.
The aircraft has been widely used by Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.
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Monday’s accident marked the 10th reported non-combat crash of a Russian warplane since Moscow invaded Ukraine nearly eight months ago.
Military experts have noted that as the number of Russian military flights increased sharply during the fighting, so did the crashes.
