Fire reported at Russian steel plant in Lipetsk after Ukrainian strike

Explosions sounded and fires broke out in the Russian city of Lipetsk late on Monday after what Ukrainian monitoring channels described as an attack by Ukrainian forces, with a blaze reported near the Novolipetsk Metallurgical Plant, the Kyiv Independent reported, citing the monitoring channel Exilenova Plus.

Drones attacked Lipetsk around 23:00 local time, and there were also reports of a missile strike, possibly involving "Flamingo" missiles, Ukrainian outlet 24 Kanal reported. Residents said they heard drones in the sky roughly every two to three minutes, along with air-defence fire and the sound of impacts.

Air-raid sirens sounded in the city, and Russian monitoring sources said air defences were trying to repel the attack, which Russian officials said targeted Lipetsk's industrial infrastructure, according to 24 Kanal. A fire was also reported near Lipetsk's airport, the monitoring channel Exilenova Plus said.

The fire near the Novolipetsk plant broke out after air-defence systems were engaged or wreckage fell, according to the monitoring channels; Russian local authorities have not commented, and the Kyiv Independent said the details could not be immediately verified.

A 2025 investigation by Ukrainska Pravda found the plant supplies Russian defence companies that produce air-defence systems, drones, missiles and other weapons. Ukraine has sanctioned the plant, while Canada and Australia have sanctioned its owner, Russian billionaire Vladimir Lisin.

The attack follows a recent missile strike on a factory in the nearby city of Yelets, in the same Lipetsk region, which 24 Kanal said makes batteries for drones, air-defence missile systems, aircraft and naval vessels; at least two of its buildings were hit.

Ukraine regularly strikes military and industrial targets deep inside Russia and in occupied territories to weaken Moscow's ability to sustain the war, the Kyiv Independent reported. Ukrainian forces also hit an ammunition depot in Russian-occupied Luhansk region overnight on Monday, triggering explosions near the city of Khrustalnyi, and on 24 October struck a petrochemical plant and a warehouse in Siberia, about 2,500 kilometres from the border, according to monitoring channels.