Aug 26 (Reuters) – An overnight drone attack started a large fire at a warehouse of Russian e-commerce giant Wildberries in Russia’s Tambov region, officials said on Wednesday, as Ukraine pushes ahead with its campaign to hurt the economy by targeting online retailers.
Tambov Governor Evgeniy Pervyshov said about 100,000 square meters (1.1 million square feet) of the facility were set ablaze, the equivalent of 14 soccer pitches.
One person was injured in the strike, he wrote on the Telegram messaging app. He did not say if the fire had been extinguished.
Ukraine has been hitting Wildberries facilities since mid-July and broadened its strategy in recent days to include the retailer’s main rival, Ozon.
The pair dominate one of the fastest-growing parts of the Russian economy, which is otherwise close to stagnation after 4-1/2 years of war in Ukraine.
In neighbouring Lipetsk region, a man and a 14-year-old were killed in a fire lit by a falling drone, while a woman was killed in a drone attack in Belgorod region bordering Ukraine, local authorities said on Telegram.
Both Ukraine and Russia have repeatedly denied targeting civilians since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
(Reporting by ReutersWriting by Alessandra PrenticeEditing by Jacqueline Wong and Andrew Heavens)
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