Kyiv, October 8: Russian state-backed media are reporting that a fire has occurred on the bridge linking mainland Russia with the Russian-controlled Crimean peninsula.

RIA-Novosti and the Tass news agency quoted local Russian official Oleg Kryuchkov as saying an object thought to be a fuel storage tank caught fire and that traffic has been stopped on the bridge. Crimea Bridge Fire Videos: Huge Blaze Rips Through Key Bridge Linking Russia to Crimea Following Explosion, Horrifying Footages Emerge.

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Images shared on social media purported to show fire and damage to the span. The authenticity of the reports and images could not be immediately verified.

The crossing is a pair of road and rail bridges that Russia built after it seized and annexed Crimea from Ukraine in violation of international law in 2014. The fire occurred hours after explosions rocked the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv early on Saturday, sending towering plumes of smoke into the sky and triggering a series of secondary explosions. Video: Huge Fire Erupts on Bridge Connecting Russia to Crimea After Fuel Tanker Explosion.

Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram that the early-morning explosions were the result of missile strikes in the centre of the city.

He said that the blasts sparked fires at one of the city's medical institutions and a nonresidential building. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

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