Two train bridges in western Russia collapsed overnight in separate incidents now being investigated as “acts of terrorism”, according to Russian authorities. The explosions took place in the Bryansk and Kursk regions close to the Ukrainian border, killing at least seven people and injuring dozens more.Svetlana Petrenko, Russia’s Investigative Committee spokeswoman, confirmed the classification. “These incidents have been classified as acts of terrorism,” she was quoted as saying by the state-run RIA news agency.The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin was kept informed throughout the night. “Throughout the night, the President received reports from the FSB and the emergencies ministry about the incident involving trains in the Kursk and Bryansk regions,” a post on the Kremlin’s Telegram channel said.Deadly collapse in BryanskThe first explosion occurred on Saturday in the Bryansk region, where a bridge collapsed onto a passenger train, resulting in seven fatalities and numerous injuries. Photos from the site showed train carriages mangled and scattered among the rubble of the destroyed bridge. Videos shared on social media appeared to have been taken by drivers who had narrowly avoided crossing the bridge before it gave way.Second derailment in KurskHours later, a freight train was thrown off its tracks in the nearby Kursk region when another bridge collapsed beneath it. The acting governor of the region, Alexander Khinshtein, said the crash triggered a fire, but there were no casualties. “The crash sparked a fire,” he said, confirming the absence of fatalities.The Investigative Committee released a statement noting that both collapses were caused by explosions.Ukraine connection?Although the Russian authorities have not publicly blamed Ukraine, there have been past accusations of sabotage against pro-Ukrainian groups targeting railway infrastructure inside Russia. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (GUR) released a statement on Sunday saying a Russian military freight train transporting food and fuel had been blown up en route to Crimea. The agency did not claim responsibility or link its announcement to the bridge incidents, but it said that a key Russian “artery” between occupied Zaporizhzhia and Crimea had been destroyed.Russia has held parts of Zaporizhzhia since early in the 2022 invasion and annexed Crimea in 2014.
