The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) has reported that a fire broke out on a crane vessel at a ship repair yard in the city of Nizhny Novgorod in western Russia on Tuesday, December 23.
The MES said the blaze at the facility on the Volga River ignited after fuel spilled from the unnamed vessel.
The incident occurred just as routine works were about to commence at the yard, the Volga Transport Prosecutor's Office said via social media.
Eyewitnesses said that the fire was preceded by an explosion.
Responding firefighters applied large quantities of foam to critical areas to prevent the further spread of the flames.
The extent of the damage to the vessel and the yard's infrastructure has not yet been disclosed.
The yard sits more than 800 kilometres away from the border with Ukraine. However, despite speculation that the incident may have been the result of sabotage or an external attack, the facility had never been included among key installations in Nizhny Novgorod that were targeted by Ukrainian strikes.
Russian officials have not issued statements on who the perpetrators might be, while Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the incident.
News outlet The Kyiv Independent said it could not yet verify Russian state media claims that one person was killed in the fire.
