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Fatal incident at firing range near Pskov caused by unexploded munitions

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has issued an order to offer all necessary help to the families of those killed

Photo ITAR-TASS/Valery Bushukhin

Photo ITAR-TASS/Valery Bushukhin

MOSCOW, October 22 (Itar-Tass) - The fatal incident at the Strugi Krasnye firing range near the city of Pskov, northwestern Russia that killed six and wounded two servicemen was caused by unexploded munitions the press service of the Russian defence ministry said on Tuesday.

The incident took place at about 19:00 Moscow time, when the servicemen were returning from shooting trials in conditions of complete darkness and tripped an unidentified object.

“Preliminary analysis of the propagation of the explosive wave and the shell-hole, and the types of wounds of the servicemen prove that it was an explosion of an artillery shell,” the press service said.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has issued an order to offer all necessary help to the families of those killed.

This is not the first fatal incident at the Strugi Krasnye firing range in the past several years. Thus, on April 13, 2011, four serviced were killed and one was wounded in an explosion that occurred during military drills of the 106th Tula division of the Russian Airborne Troops.

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