A fire broke out Wednesday at a power plant in Russia’s southern Rostov region, with authorities denying local media reports suggesting an explosion may have been the cause.
Video shared online showed large flames and plumes of black smoke rising from the Novocherkasskaya power station, located some 50 kilometers southeast of Ukraine’s partially Russian-occupied Donetsk region.
Rostov Governor Vasily Golubev said firefighters managed to extinguish the flames — which covered an area of 200 square meters — by late Wednesday afternoon.
Three plant workers were hospitalized with injuries resulting from the fire, Golubev wrote on the Telegram messaging app.
The Gazprom-owned power station suspended its operations and “temporarily” restricted electricity supplies to regional customers, he added.
The governor denied local media reports, which cited an anonymous local law enforcement official who claimed a loud explosion had preceded the fire.
Although an inspection is underway, Golubev said experts believe the fire may have been caused by a “gas ignition from technological works.”
The incident at the Novocherkassk power station follows a series of recent drone strikes against oil refineries in Russian regions located near the border with Ukraine.
Kyiv has denied its role in these and other attacks on Russian territory.
