A fire broke out at the Stary Oskol oil depot in Russia's Belgorod Oblast after it was hit by Ukrainian drones, Governor Vyacheslov Gladkov said. "As a result of the detonation, several tanks caught fire on the site," he claimed.

Editor’s Note: This is a developing story.

A fire broke out at the Stary Oskol oil depot in Russia’s Belgorod Oblast after it was attacked by Ukrainian drones overnight on Jan. 7, regional Governor Vyacheslov Gladkov reported.

Residents of Stary Oskol reported a fire outside the city late at night on Jan. 6 and claimed a local oil depot was burning, according to the Russian opposition news channel Astra. Witnesses posted photos and video footage of a large fire at the site to social media. Later, Gladkov confirmed that a drone attacked the oil storage facility.

“As a result of the detonation, several tanks caught fire on the site,” Gladkov said. Firefighters are extinguishing the blaze and there appear to be no casualties, he added.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims at the time of publication.

Belgorod Oblast borders Ukraine’s Sumy, Kharkiv, and Luhansk oblasts and is frequently targeted by Ukrainian strike on Russian military and industrial assets. Ukraine has previously attacked the Stary Oskol oil depot as part of its campaign against Russian oil, which supplies Moscow’s armed forces and funds its war chest.

Belgorod Oblast is also regularly used as a staging area for Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory.

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