Ukrainian drone strike ignites major blaze at Saint Petersburg warehouses

Footage from Saint Petersburg shows a vast plume of grey smoke rising above the warehouse as firefighters battle the blaze. Emergency crews were deployed after the strike, which officials in the Leningrad region said had hit civilian infrastructure. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Leningrad Governor Alexander Drozdenko said three people were injured and that Russian air defences intercepted 33 Ukrainian drones over the region overnight. Wildberries confirmed that two of its warehouses in Saint Petersburg had suspended operations following the attack, although the company released few further details. Flights at Pulkovo Airport were briefly halted before resuming later in the morning. The incident is the latest in a series of long-range Ukrainian strikes targeting logistics, energy and industrial facilities inside Russia. Russian officials and Wildberries said it was the third overnight attack on the retailer's warehouses within a week. Last weekend, warehouse sites in Elektrostal, near Moscow, and in the Tambov region were destroyed, killing eight night-shift workers and injuring dozens. Earlier in the week, further fires broke out at Wildberries facilities in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk, leaving at least one person dead and around 15 others injured. Ukraine describes such operations as "long-range sanctions", arguing that logistics hubs play a role in supplying dual-use goods, electronics and components used by Russia's defence industry. Moscow rejects that claim, insisting the strikes target civilian infrastructure and disrupt businesses and residents. The exchange of long-range attacks has continued to intensify as efforts to reach a diplomatic settlement remain deadlocked.