Seven killed after two bridges destroyed by 'explosions' in Russian regions bordering Ukraine

At least 66 others were injured, including three children, officials said.

LAST UPDATE | 1 Jun

SEVEN PEOPLE WERE killed and dozens injured after bridges in two separate Russian regions bordering Ukraine collapsed overnight, officials have said.

Russian investigators said they believed that “explosions” had caused the two bridges in the border regions of Kursk and Bryansk to collapse overnight.

In the Bryansk region at 10:50 pm local time last night, “a road bridge collapsed as a result of a blast”, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement.

In the Kursk region early this morning, at around 3:00 am local time, “a railway bridge was also blown up”, it added.

The bridge in the Bryansk region collapsed onto a railway line, derailing a passenger train heading to Moscow and killing seven people.

The one in neighbouring Kursk derailed a freight train and injured the driver, officials said.

Videos posted on social media from the Bryansk region showed rescuers clambering over the mangled chassis of a train belonging to national operator Russian Railways, while screams could be heard in another video.

“There are seven dead as a result of the collapse of a bridge onto railway tracks,” Alexander Bogomaz, the Bryansk region’s governor, wrote on Telegram.

At least 66 others were injured, including three children, he said, giving a revised toll.

In a separate incident in the Kursk region, a rail bridge collapsed onto a road, derailing a freight train.

“Last night… in the Zheleznogorsk district, a bridge collapsed while a freight locomotive was passing. Part of the train fell onto the road below the bridge,” Kursk region governor Alexander Khinshtein said on Telegram.

“One of the locomotive drivers suffered leg injuries, and the entire crew was taken to hospital,” he said.

Ukraine, which Russia has blamed for previous incidents, did not immediately comment.

An AFP reporter in central Moscow saw ambulances parked at Kievsky railway station awaiting the arrival of injured passengers.

In one video posted from the Bryansk region social media account, someone could be heard screaming as eyewitnesses rushed to find help.

“How did the bridge collapse? There are children there!” a woman can be heard shouting in the video.

Russia’s emergency ministry said a team was on site in the Bryansk region, while Russian Railways said it had dispatched repair trains to the scene.

Russia has been hit by dozens of sabotage attacks since Moscow launched its offensive against Ukraine in 2022, many targeting its vast railroad network.

Kyiv says Russia uses railroads to transport troops and weaponry to its forces fighting in Ukraine.

The incidents came on the eve of a possible meeting between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Istanbul, amid a US-led diplomatic push to end the conflict.