Six servicemen were killed and 12 injured on Tuesday in an explosion at a weapons testing ground in Russia’s southern Astrakhan region, a spokesman for the regional emergencies services directorate said.
Several of the injured are in a grave condition, he said.
Russia’s Military Prosecutor’s Office has launched an investigation into the blast, which is believed to have come occurred after the negligent handling of ammunition.
In June and July, a series of explosions at military training grounds and arms depots in several Russian regions killed a total of eight people. The explosions were caused by safety violations.
A total of 10 servicemen also died in two separate incidents in November 2009 at an arms depot in the city of Ulyanovsk, in Russia’s Volga region.