At least 13 dead when a Russian apartment building collapses in Belgorod

A residential building partially collapsed Russian border town of Belgorod Sunday left at least 13 people dead and 20 others injured, officials said. They blamed Ukrainian shelling for the destruction of the building.

Online footage showed rescuers searching for survivors in the remains of the building’s stairwell and then fleeing the scene as part of the roof collapsed to the ground. According to the Russian Emergencies Ministry, 13 bodies have been recovered from the rubble so far.

The Russian Investigative Committee, the country’s top law enforcement agency, said in a statement that the 10-story building had been hit by Ukrainian shelling.

The Russian Defense Ministry later wrote on social media that the building was damaged by fragments of a launched Tochka-U TRC missile. It also said air defenses fired several more missiles over the Belgorod region, as well as two drones that were destroyed in a separate incident later on Sunday.

Air raid alerts continued throughout Belgorod while rescue workers responded. The city also came under fire on Saturday evening, killing one person and wounding 29 others, Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

Cities across western Russia are regularly attacked of drones since May 2023, with Russian officials blaming Kiev. Ukrainian officials never acknowledge responsibility for attacks on Russian territory or the Crimean peninsula.

The Belgorod region on Russia’s western border has been the target of numerous attacks. Although most cross-border shelling occurs in rural areas, there have also been attacks on the region’s capital. In December 2023, Shelling in the heart of the city of Belgorod 25 people died, prompting authorities to begin setting up public shelters.

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