During the night into Wednesday, April 29, Ukrainian-launched drones struck strategic targets in Russia’s Orenburg region, located approximately 1,400 kilometers from Ukraine. According to preliminary information, the target was an oil refinery in Orsk, reports Dialog.ua citing social media sources.
At 4:10 a.m. on Wednesday, an air raid siren was activated in the Orenburg region, and temporary flight restrictions were imposed at Orsk Airport. Shortly afterward, multiple explosions were heard in the city. Local residents claimed on social media that the refinery had been hit.
Orsk mayor Artyom Vorobyov confirmed that strategic facilities in the city had been targeted by drone attacks. At 6:38 a.m., he urged residents to remain at home. By 7:20 a.m., Orenburg region governor Yevgeny Solntsev announced a ban on flights across the region, calling on residents to remain calm.
The Orsk oil refinery, which can process approximately 6.6 million tonnes of crude oil per year, supplies fuel and lubricants to the Russian military, making it a target for Ukrainian forces. The facility has previously been attacked multiple times, including on the night of November 11, 2025, when fires were reported on-site. This information was confirmed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Staff.
Three attacks on Tuapse
As previously reported, the Russian Black Sea city of Tuapse is also currently experiencing the effects of Ukrainian drone strikes. The Tuapse refinery, owned by Rosneft, processed around 12 million tonnes of oil annually before the attacks and supplies fuel to Russian military forces operating on the southern front and in occupied Crimea.
Following a meeting with Krasnodar region governor Veniamin Kondratyev, Russian leader Vladimir Putin stated that there was “no serious threat” in Tuapse despite multiple fires at the refinery.
He claimed that “people are coping with the threats they face” and that the region is not facing any major danger. Putin also argued that Ukrainian forces are targeting refineries due to battlefield conditions, rather than because oil export revenues are used to finance Russia’s war.
However, Tuapse mayor Sergei Boiko urged residents living near the refinery to evacuate due to the risk of fire spreading. After burning oil began flowing through the streets, a regional state of emergency was declared on April 28. Later that evening, Emergency Situations Minister Alexander Kurenkov stated that the oil leak had been contained, while admitting that initial response measures had been insufficient.
Explosions and environmental damage
Following the third Ukrainian strike on Tuapse, barrels of petroleum products began exploding at the refinery. Burning fuel oil spread across the site, with flames rising more than 100 meters into the air and thick black smoke stretching for kilometers. Video footage shows burning oil flowing like lava along buildings, scorching everything in its path, while containers exploded due to extreme heat.
Residents have also reported an environmental disaster on social media. Fuel oil reportedly spilled into the Tuapse River and the Black Sea, oil slicks covered beaches, and the city experienced what locals described as “black rain.”
Ukraine has been systematically targeting the Tuapse refinery and port since mid-April. After the April 20 strike, local authorities spent four days extinguishing fires. The latest attack on the night of April 28 marked the third strike within two weeks, following earlier attacks on April 16 and 20.
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