Russian divers are now assessing the damage caused by a huge explosion on the Kerch bridge to Crimea, which serves as both a vital supply route for the troops engaged in fighting in southern Ukraine and a prominent symbol of Moscow’s takeover of the peninsula.
The divers will begin their job in the morning, according to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin, and a more thorough examination above the water’s surface was anticipated to be finished by day’s end, according to Russian news agencies.
The crew will check the bridge’s foundations for structural soundness and look for more traces of the explosion, which claimed the lives of three individuals.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian governor of Crimea, told reporters that the situation was “manageable” and that it was “unpleasant but not deadly” before promising to react for the explosion.
Of course, he said, “emotions have been stirred, and there is a legitimate desire to exact retribution.”
The bridge serves as a key route for both the Sevastopol naval port in Russia and the Russian army that govern the majority of Kherson, in southern Ukraine. However, late yesterday night saw the restoration of rail movement over the bridge, so it is doubtful that the damage would significantly impede Russian supply lines.
Ukrainian authorities sent jubilant messages after the explosion on the Kerch Strait bridge on Saturday, but they made no claims of culpability.
Furiously claiming that a truck bomb was to blame for the explosion, Russia evaded taking responsibility.
However, a puzzling ‘wave’ that emerged beneath the bridge just before it exploded has prompted to conjecture that the Ukrainian special forces utilized a boat or a drone carrying explosives to undertake a strike to cut off Putin’s supply routes.
President Vladimir Putin unveiled the 12-mile Crimea Bridge, which connects the peninsula to Russia’s transportation network, with much fanfare four years after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.
Samir Yusubov, 25, a resident of the Russian Krasnodar area, was identified by Russian law enforcement as the accused owner of the red International Prostar vehicle that, according to authorities, detonated on the Crimean Bridge.
Who was at the wheel of the vehicle when it erupted is still under investigation.
Although it was not immediately obvious whether the explosion was a premeditated strike, the destruction of such a prominent building coincided with Russian failures on the battlefield and may have cast doubt on Kremlin promises that the war is progressing as planned.
On Saturday, Putin issued a directive requiring increased security for the bridge and the systems that provide power and natural gas to Crimea. He also commissioned an inquiry.
Russians may be able to reconstruct it, but they won’t be able to defend it if they lose the battle, according to political expert James Nixey of the British think tank Chatham House.
According to Russian authorities, three individuals were killed in the explosion, most likely the passengers of a vehicle that was driving close to the truck that exploded. Seven gasoline tanker wagons of a 59-wagon train on route to the peninsula caught fire on the bridge’s upper level as well.
Ten hours after the explosion, restricted train service was allowed to resume, and limited automobile traffic soon followed.
Russian missile assaults on the city of Zaporizhzhia in southeast Ukraine, 80 miles from Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant, resulted in 17 fatalities and around 50 hospitalizations.
Oleksandr Starukh, the governor, said on the Telegram messaging app that a dozen strikes resulted in a nine-story structure being partly demolished, five residential buildings being leveled, and several more buildings being damaged.
After eight were found alive, he cautioned, “There may be more individuals beneath the wreckage.”
Nevertheless, he said, “Ukrainians realize that our future is bright. “This is an occupied-free future for our whole region, including Crimea.”
A video of the bridge and Marilyn Monroe singing “Happy birthday, Mr. President” were shared on social media by the chairman of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.
Ukrainian authorities have often stated they aim to demolish the bridge ever since the conflict broke out on February 24.
However, a top Ukrainian presidential advisor said this morning that one of Vladimir Putin’s battlefield commanders may have been responsible for the bloodshed at the Kerch Strait crossing.
Mykhailo Podolyak said that the defence ministry and Russia’s FSB secret agency are engaged in a furious struggle over the mishandled war and are attempting to damage one another’s reputations.
Is it not clear who caused the explosion? He said that a truck had come from the Russian Federation.
Unquestionably, we are seeing the start of significant bad developments in Russia.
Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, said Kyiv’s response to the damage of public property “testifies to its terrorist character.”