A major fire broke out this Saturday after an oil pipeline ruptured in western Ukraine, injuring three people, Ukrainian emergency services said.
“At 17:00 (15:00 Lisbon time) near the village of Strymba, Nadvornyansky district, an oil pipeline (with a diameter of 150 millimeters) ruptured,” the National Emergency Service of Ukraine reported, indicating that the oil was distributed through an area of 100 square meters.
The fire broke out for as yet unknown reasons, and the local press reported that there was a strong explosion.
Images posted on social media, which Agence France-Presse (AFP) could not verify at this stage, showed clouds of thick black smoke hanging over what appears to be a village.
“Rescue teams are at the scene,” emergency services said.
The fire zone is located hundreds of kilometers from the front line of hostilities with Russian troops, in the eastern part of the country.
The Russian military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 in Ukraine has caused, according to the latest UN data, the worst refugee crisis in Europe since the Second World War (1939-1945).
The Russian invasion, justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for the sake of Russia’s security, was condemned by much of the international community, which responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and stripping Russia of political and economic sanctions.