Fire at Crimea military base forces over 2,000 to evacuate

A Russian military base in occupied Crimea erupted into flames after a series of explosions that came as Ukraine said its forces had carried out an attack on the Black Sea peninsula. About 2,000 locals were hastily evacuated as the blaze engulfed the Russian military training ground in the Kirovske district. A nearby highway was also closed as smoke billowed into the sky. The attack on the military base came as Russia fired cruise missiles and drones at military and infrastructure targets in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa for a second night running. At least 12 people were injured in what an official described as a “hellish” attack. Gennadiy Trukhanov, the mayor of Odesa, said the attack was the biggest in the city since the start of the war. The Kremlin said the strikes were “retribution” for an apparent Ukrainian attack this week on the Kerch bridge, which connects Russia to Crimea. Ukrainian special forces are believed to have carried out the attack using unmanned naval “suicide” boats to explode underneath the 12-mile long bridge. Russia’s antiterrorist committee said that the attack, which killed two people, had been carried out by two seaborne drones. Read the best of our journalism: Subscribe to The Times and The Sunday Times YouTube channel: Find us on Facebook: Find us on Twitter: Find us on Instagram: