Russia Explosion: Blast at Russian ammunition dump injures 4

RUSSIA -- An explosion at a Russian military base in Siberia set off fires and injured at least four people Monday, authorities said.

The explosion happened in an ammunition depot at the base, located just over six miles from the closed military town of Achinsk in the Krasnoyarsk region of Siberia.

Emergency service personnel evacuated residents within 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) of the blast site "to ensure the security of the population of the settlements located near the depots."

Local authorities said residents don't face an immediate threat but asked people to stay away from the military base.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the storage site that exploded held "gunpowder charges for artillery shells."

The state-run TASS news agency quoted an anonymous source saying the depot held up to 40,000 artillery shells for tank guns.

Ammunition depot explosions are not unusual in Russia.

After the most recent incident in May 2019, a fire raged for almost a week before water drops from military aircraft and helicopters helped put out the blaze.