Russia has evacuated more than 2,000 people from nearby villages after an explosion at an arms depot in the Ryazan region southeast of Moscow, officials said.
As more than 400 firefighters battled to contain the blaze that broke out at the depot that day, officials said five people were injured, but no casualties were reported.
A wildfire erupted in a nearby dry meadow, the emergency ministry said, adding that the weapons were raised by the explosion.
Flames and huge clouds of smoke rose into the sky above the depot, including 75,000 tons of shields.
An investigative committee said it had launched a criminal investigation into possible violations of firearms handling rules.
The emergency ministry said late Wednesday that it had sent additional firefighters from the Moscow region and was using equipment, including a fire-fighting train. The Minister of Emergency Situations, Yevgeny Zinichev, went to the scene.
The regional governor, Nikolai Lubimov, described the situation as “critical”, but said in a statement in the evening: “The worst is behind us, the situation is under control.”
The emergency ministry said it had evacuated more than 2,300 residents within a five-kilometer radius of the fire and nearby highways had been closed.
The Western Military District in charge of the site said it had evacuated its troops after a failed attempt to fight the fire.
Such accidents are relatively common in Russia due to the large amount of old moves left in storage.
