Media: Belgorod blast likely caused by errant Russian bomb

A powerful explosion in the Russian city of Belgorod on the evening of December 6 wounded one resident and damaged infrastructure across a residential district, according to local officials and independent Russian outlet ASTRA.

Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov initially attributed the incident to an “unidentified munition” allegedly fired by Ukrainian forces. He reported that one man was injured and that power lines, private homes, and commercial buildings sustained damage. About 15,000 households were left without electricity for several hours.

However, ASTRA, citing sources within the region’s emergency services, reported that the blast was caused by a Russian FAB-series aerial bomb accidentally dropped by a Russian bomber operating near the border. According to the outlet, the bomb detonated near a residential building on Dalny Lane, injuring a man identified as Alimkhan O. and damaging three private houses, a restaurant, trucks, and several cars.

Residents said that no air-raid sirens or warnings sounded before the explosion. They reported hearing the roar of an aircraft flying toward the border moments before the blast. The explosion was so strong, they said, that debris “rained down” over rooftops along Storozhevaya Street.

ASTRA’s newsroom has tracked at least 133 aerial bombs—126 FAB bombs and seven glide bombs (UMPB)—as well as three missiles accidentally dropped by Russian aircraft on Russian territory and occupied parts of Ukraine since the start of 2025.

In 2024, the outlet documented at least 165 such accidental bomb falls.

By Sabina Mammadli