Explosion damages bridge to Crimea, hurting Russia’s supply line

The Crimea bridge, the only bridge connecting Russia and Crimea, had an explosion, believed to be a Ukrainian attack, and partially collapsed on Saturday (local time). Foreign media reported that the collapse of the Crimea bridge, which is a crucial supply chain for the Russian forces’ southern frontline of the war against Ukraine and a symbol of Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, used to be a Ukrainian territory, dealt a massive blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to the Russian authorities and CNN, a truck heading to Crimea from Russia through the Crimea bridge exploded around 6 a.m. on Saturday. Several dozen meters of the bridge deck for cars collapsed due to the incident, disconnecting the bridge. The railroad section of the bridge next to the car lane also caught fire, which led to the explosion of seven fuel cisterns being pulled by a train headed in the direction of Crimea. Three people died, including the truck driver and the passengers in a car next to the truck. According to the New York Times and the Washington Post, a senior Ukrainian official said on condition of anonymity that Ukraine’s intelligence services, SBU, had orchestrated the attack. The Ukrainian government has not made an official statement, and the Russian authorities said it was the explosion of a bomb loaded on a Ukrainian truck.

Foreign media and experts predict that the explosion on the Crimea bridge will push the Russian forces invading Ukraine and President Putin further into the corner. The explosion caused significant damage to the key supply line for Russia’s war supplies while the Ukrainian forces were reclaiming territories occupied by the Russian forces on the southern and eastern war fronts. Some say that President Putin may use nuclear weapons for revenge as he swallowed an insult of the explosion of the bridge, which symbolizes Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, the day after his 70th birthday.

The CCTV footage released after the incident showed how powerful the explosion was. A Flash of light and flame burst from a truck heading to Crimea from Russia on the bridge around 6 a.m. on Saturday. The flame covered the four-lane deck for cars, the opposing car lane, and the railroad section. Several dozen meters of the bridge deck collapsed, and the railroad and a train with 15 cars caught fire. Videos of the Crimea bridge on fire, sending up black smoke, were posted online.


Sung-Hwi Kang yolo@donga.com