Russian Freight Train Derails In Sabotage Attack As Airstrikes Pummel Ukraine For 2nd Day
An apparent sabotage attack with an "explosive device" has resulted in a disastrous train derailment in the Russian region of Byransk which borders Ukraine.
"An unidentified explosive device went off, as a result of which a locomotive of a freight train derailed," Bryansk governor Alexander Bogomaz announced on Telegram Monday.
The governor further confirmed there were no casualties and that the train struck the device "on the 136th kilometer" of the railroad between regional hub Bryansk and the town of Unecha, as cited in AFP.
The Bryansk region near Ukraine has been site of frequent cross-border attacks throughout the conflict. The latest was just the day prior, with projectiles fire from Ukraine killing four people in a Russian village which lies just 10km from the border.
Bogomaz says the FSB security service has opened a criminal case looking into the act of "sabotage".
Meanwhile Monday witnessed the second consecutive day of large-scale Russian airstrikes across mainly central Ukraine.
Central Dnipropetrovsk saw the heaviest bombardment, resulting in at least 34 people wounded - among them children - according to regional Ukrainian authorities. "There are already 34 wounded due to a missile attack on the Pavlograd district," head of the Dnipropetrovsk region Sergiy Lysak said in a press statement.
Another attack on #Russia in the #Bryansk region.
— Tim White (@TWMCLtd) May 1, 2023
Now a train laden with oil has been derailed after saboteurs damaged the track with an IED.
The locomotive has 60 wagons carrying fuel and timber. There was a fire at the scene after the derailment.#StopRussia pic.twitter.com/0bghLPa4NX
Russia's defense ministry confirmed the overnight wave of strikes, which it said was directed at Ukrainian military targets, including weapons depots and ammunition factories.
The United States condemned the missile attack as "barbaric". US ambassador to Kyiv, Bridget Brink, issued a statement on Twitter describing that "Russia again launched missiles in the deep of night at Ukrainian cities where civilians, including children, should be able to sleep safely and peacefully."
⚡️The first moments of the explosion in Pavlograd after yesterday's strike of Russian cruise missiles. pic.twitter.com/k5QJiX4EL4
— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) May 1, 2023
"I am grateful for those who protect Ukraine’s skies, and the United States will continue to work hard and fast to support them and their ability to defeat Russia’s barbaric attacks on the people of Ukraine," she said.
Ukraine's military once again claimed its anti-air defenses had intercepted many of the inbound missiles. As casualties mount from the last two days of aerial attacks, Kiev is likely to press its Western backers even harder at this point for more advanced anti-air systems.
