The Ministry of Defense reported that the cruiser "Moscow" is being towed to the port after the fire
The flagship missile cruiser "Moscow" was seriously damaged due to a fire and an explosion of ammunition, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. The crew was completely evacuated, and the fire was localized. The ministry noted that the main missile armament of the ship is not damaged, and the cruiser remains buoyant. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Vladimir Putin has already received information about the emergency. It is assumed that this ship participated in the attack on the island of Snake. According to TASS, it was expected that the ship would last until 2040.
On April 14, at about 2 a.m. (Moscow time), the missile cruiser of the Black Sea Fleet "Moscow" was seriously damaged as a result of the detonation of ammunition, which occurred due to a fire, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. It was indicated that the crew was completely evacuated.
Later, the defense ministry said that the source of ignition on the ship was localized, there was no open gorenje anymore, and the explosions of ammunition had been stopped. Now the Ministry of Defense is establishing the causes of the fire.
"The crew of the cruiser was evacuated to the ships of the Black Sea Fleet located in the area. Measures are being taken to tow the cruiser to the port," the ministry added.
Putin was informed about the emergency
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russian President Vladimir Putin received a report from the Ministry of Defense on the situation with the cruiser.
"Of course," he replied to a question from journalists. Peskov did not specify whether there would be any instructions from the president in connection with this incident.
Peskov also forwarded the question about the details of what happened on the cruiser to the Ministry of Defense. "This is the topic of the Ministry of Defense. I can't say anything," he said.
The Ministry of Defense does not report exactly where the emergency occurred, however, according to the Kommersant publication, on April 10, the cruiser was spotted in Sevastopol.
Kommersant clarifies that in open sources it was not possible to find evidence from residents of Sevastopol about a fire or explosions in the bays of the city.
What is the famous missile cruiser
"Moscow" is the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, the lead ship of project 1164 "Atlant". It was commissioned in 1983 under the name "Glory", and in 1996 the vessel received its current name.
In 2015, the cruiser headed the permanent operational unit of the Russian Navy in the Mediterranean Sea, where it covered the Russian Khmeimim airbase in Syria with the help of air defense systems. On July 22, 2016, the flagship was awarded the Order of Nakhimov.
In 2020, the cruiser was launched after repairs. A TASS source in the military-industrial complex claimed that the ship will last until 2040.
"For domestic first-rank warships, this will become one of the records of the total service life," the agency interlocutor noted.
Daria Klester
