An explosive device was detected and defused in the turbine room at the Irganaiskaya hydropower plant in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, regional news services reported. A fire broke out at the same plant earlier.
According to law enforcement officials, the explosive device was found late Wednesday in the same area where a fire had started Tuesday. Some reports indicate that the makeshift explosive device, which reportedly was equipped with a remote detonator, was discovered while a fire drill was being observed at the 400-MW hydroelectric power plant.
The fire that flared up late Tuesday evening resulted in no casualties, and there were no power limitations for consumers, according to wire reports.
After the explosive device was discovered Wednesday, a robot was used to defuse it, reports indicate. A local police source earlier said the explosives and the fire were not connected. Officials told wire services that the fire occurred for technical reasons and was not the result of a terrorist attack.
In July, two security guards were killed in a raid on a hydropower plant in southern Russia in which attackers detonated bombs that disabled the plant, wire services reported. RIA Novosti news service reported that two militants suspected of being among the group of gunmen that attacked the plant were later killed by police.
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