Russian Arms Depot Explodes Again 10 Days Later, 8 Killed

Eight soldiers died in a munitions blast Monday in central Russia, a defence ministry spokesman said, at the same arms depot where two died in a huge accidental weapons explosion 10 days earlier.

Photo: Russian Arms Depot Explodes Again 10 Days Later, 8 Killed

"Eight soldiers died as the result of a munitions blast at the 31st arsenal of the Russian navy in Ulyanovsk," the defence ministry spokesman told AFP.

Ministry spokesman Alexei Kuznetsov said two others were injured in Monday's accident at the arsenal in Ulyanovsk, 720 kilometers (430 miles) east of Moscow.

Kuznetsov said a shell detonated when military personnel were loading ammunition onto a truck to be taken away and destroyed. That set off other explosives on the truck, which was badly damaged.

The victims had been cleaning up after a massive series of explosions ripped through the arsenal Nov. 13 and sparked a fire that raged for hours. Two military firefighters were killed in that blaze. Authorities blamed it on human error, The Associated Press reports.

The blast took place at 1430 (1130 GMT) when the team were clearing the area in the navy base which had been affected by the huge explosions and fire on 13 November.

Investigations are under way into both incidents.

At the time of the 13 November incident, officials said artillery shells and torpedoes were kept at the arsenal, BBC News informs.