Kerch Bridge closed to traffic overnight, explosions heard across occupied Crimea and fires break out

Explosions were heard in temporarily occupied Crimea on the night of 22-23 June, while a series of fires broke out across the peninsula. The Kerch Bridge was also closed to traffic throughout the night.

Source: Krymskyi Veter (Crimean Wind), Supernova+, Krymskiy Most: Operativnaya Informatsiya (Crimean Bridge: Operational Information) Telegram channels

Details: The monitoring group Krymskyi Veter, citing satellite imagery data, reported new fire indications at an oil terminal in Kerch, which was hit in an attack on 21 June and has continued burning since.

Fires are also reported at the entrance to Kerch and near the town of Baherove, where S-300/S-400 air defence positions are located. New fire hotspots were also detected at an oil terminal in the Port of Kavkaz and at the Pivdenna railway station in Kerch.

Supernova+ reported that explosions had been heard across Crimea, and later in the morning said an attack had successfully hit a fuel transfer and storage complex at TES-Terminal.

Russian-installed authorities in Crimea have not commented on the fires or the attack. However, a Telegram channel reporting on traffic to the Kerch Bridge said at 23:24 on 22 June that road traffic across the bridge had been temporarily suspended. Movement was only resumed more than 5.5 hours later, at 05:10 on the morning of 23 June.

Background:

• On 16 June, Refat Chubarov, Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, urged Russian citizens who are illegally staying in temporarily occupied Crimea to leave the peninsula immediately.
• On 21 June, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported strikes on targets in Russia's Krasnodar Krai and in occupied Kerch.
• The Russian occupation authorities in Crimea announced new restrictions on petrol sales, under which fuel can no longer be purchased by anyone except representatives of the occupation administration.
• Also on 21 June, rolling power outage schedules were introduced in Crimea due to electricity supply issues.

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