This archive report was first published on 9 August 2019.
On Thursday, a rocket engine explosion at a testing site in northern Russia resulted in the deaths of two people and a spike in radiation levels in the nearby city of Severodvinsk, inhabited by 185,000 people.
According to authorities, a brief spike in radiation was reported in Severodvinsk, contradicting the defense ministry's earlier statement that radiation levels were normal.
RIA news agency quoted the defense ministry as saying that no dangerous substances had been released into the atmosphere by the explosion of a liquid-propellant rocket engine in the Arkhangelsk region. Six people were injured in the blast.
“A short-term rise in background radiation was recorded at 12 o’clock in Severodvinsk,” said Ksenia Yudina, a spokeswoman for the city authorities. The city’s website stated that the radiation level had fully “normalized”.
The rocket engine explosion occurred at a weapons testing area near the village of Nyonoksa in Arkhangelsk region, according to Interfax news agency, citing unnamed security sources.
As a result of the incident, an area near Nyonoksa is used for tests on weapons including ballistic and cruise missiles that are used by the Russian navy.
Officials closed an area of the Dvina Bay in the White Sea to shipping for a month due to the incident.
Published on August 9, 2019, at 06:31 UTC.
