The night of Tuesday, July 21, became a time of heightened anxiety for several regions of Russia. The country was hit by a wave of combined strikes: rockets and drones attacked Lipetsk, Belgorod, Anapa, Volgograd, and other settlements. Sirens sounded across the country, fires broke out, and residents found themselves in the danger zone.
Lipetsk: Fire in the Industrial Zone
One of the main targets of the attack was Lipetsk. Immediately after the alarm was raised in the city, a major fire broke out. Witnesses and local social media channels report that the fire occurred on the territory between the Lipetsk-2 Thermal Power Plant (TEC-2) and the Novolipetsk Steel plant (NLMK).
At this time, it remains unclear which specific object became the target of the strike — the power station or the metallurgical giant. NLMK is the largest steelmaking complex in Russia, accounting for about 20% of all Russian steel. While Russian media position the plant as a producer of exclusively civilian products, Ukrainian intelligence services point out that steel from the complex is purchased by companies working in the missile industry. NLMK representatives categorically deny any supply of military products.
Parallel to this, the Lipetsk TEC-2 could also have been hit — one of the key thermal power plants of the Chernozem region, providing heat not only to the city but also to industrial enterprises in the area. The Governor of the Lipetsk region, Yegor Artamonov, officially confirmed the fact of the attack on the region and its facilities.
Belgorod: "Rain of Shrapnel" and Water Outage
A large-scale strike also hit the Belgorod region. Over the regional center and the adjacent agglomeration, according to local residents, "it rained shrapnel from downed rockets." The attack was accompanied by bright flashes and the sounds of explosions.
The consequences of the strike affected the city's infrastructure: water supply was disrupted in some areas of Belgorod, indicating a probable hit on energy facilities or communications. Despite the scale of the attack, the operational headquarters of the Belgorod region stated that no one was injured as a result of the shelling. The department has not yet provided detailed information on material damage.
Volgograd, Anapa, and Crimea: Alarm and Explosions
The situation was tense in the south of the country as well. In Volgograd, on the night of Tuesday, the rocket danger siren sounded, and residents heard the sounds of explosions. However, it is still unclear whether a real strike was delivered on facilities in the region, as there is no official data on the consequences.
Drones were also detected in Anapa, Mariupol, and Crimea. Explosions were heard on the peninsula at night, indicating an attempted attack. More detailed details about the consequences of the drone strikes became known from video materials published on social media.
Background and Context of the Attack
Large-scale strikes on Russian territory are a continuation of the active phase of the conflict. The day before, operators of the Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Forces reported the destruction of eight important elements of the Russian air defense system. In addition, it was previously reported about the sabotage activities of the special forces of the SBU Center for Special Operations "Alpha," which struck the FSB coordination center on the temporarily occupied territory of the Kherson region.
