Body fragments found at training ground in Khmelnytskyi after Ukrainian Armed Forces ammunition depot explosion

Body fragments belonging to those killed have been discovered at the training ground in Khmelnytskyi, where an ammunition depot exploded on July 31.

The head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Administration, Serhiy Tyurin, announced this.

“During the search at the training ground, body fragments were found. Forensic and molecular genetic examinations are being conducted to establish the identities of those killed. Additional investigations have also been ordered to determine all the circumstances of the tragedy. The search operation and investigative activities are ongoing,” — Tyurin wrote in his Telegram channel.

According to the regional administration head, work to deal with the aftermath of the incident is continuing: more than 120 rescue workers have been deployed to the scene. Tyurin also acknowledged that a dacha residential area adjoins the training ground and said that an assessment of damages is underway.

The explosion at the ammunition depot in Khmelnytskyi occurred on July 31. Local media were the first to report it, after which the authorities confirmed the information, describing the incident as an explosion at a military training ground. According to local authorities, the blast radius of the ammunition scattered as a result of secondary detonation reached 1 km.

According to information from Russian security forces relayed by TASS, the depot that exploded in Khmelnytskyi belonged to the Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (SOF). At least 20 military personnel were killed in the explosion.

The incident in Khmelnytskyi was not the first of its kind in Ukraine. On July 6 of this year, an ammunition depot exploded in Vyshneve in the Kyiv region — the depot had been located within a residential area, and the detonation continued for two days. In the wake of that incident, deputy Maryana Bezugla acknowledged that Ukrainian authorities had placed ammunition in residential areas on more than one occasion.