Russian online retail warehouses hit by deadly Ukrainian strikes
Watch: Massive warehouse fire in Moscow region after Ukraine strikes
Eight people were killed and 62 injured when Ukrainian drones attacked two warehouses belonging to Russia’s largest online retailer Wildberries, according to Russian officials.
There were seven deaths and 25 injuries at a warehouse in the city of Tambov, about 475 kilometers southeast of Moscow. At another Wildberries warehouse in Elektrostal in the Moscow region, there was one death and 37 injuries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attacks hit “large logistics facilities” used to “supply approved components for drone production and navigation equipment.”
He added that Ukraine also hit targets in the Sea of Azov, the Black Sea and Russia’s annexed Crimea.
Images taken from the scene of one of the warehouse attacks showed dozens of workers running towards the parking area, flames and huge clouds of black smoke rising from a large logistics building.
The attacks appear to have started at night, with some videos showing terrified and injured personnel trying to escape as the explosions continued. Another clip shows the walls of a warehouse falling apart as it is engulfed in flames.
Zelensky said Ukraine’s operations were in response to “Russian attacks on our civilian infrastructure, cities and communities.” Until Wednesday, 14 people were killed in Russian attacks across Ukraine overnight.
Blueberries are often described as the Russian equivalent of the Amazon. The merged RWB group, which combines Wildberries with advertising firm Russ, was valued at around $12.6bn (£9.3bn) by Forbes Russia in 2026.
Serhii Kuzan, head of the Ukrainian Center for Security and Cooperation, told the BBC that Wildberries was a “vital component” of Russian logistics and that the website was used by Russian volunteers to purchase military equipment, including radios, body armor and drone components.
“The main justification for attacking Wildberries’ warehouses is to disrupt Russian logistics and the supply of dual-use goods, critical electronics, sanctioned goods and the like to the Russian military and Russian arms manufacturers,” he said.
“Collateral damage from such attacks could have a serious impact on the Russian economy, as well as a psychological impact on Russian society and possibly on continued support for the war.”
Russia has targeted similar facilities in Ukraine since the start of the war, including postal services and some electronics distributors.
Wildberries CEO Tatyana Kim, one of Russia’s first female billionaires, said it was a “terrible night” for Russia and the company.
“Seven people working the night shift died on the spot,” Tambov region governor Evgeniy Pervyshov said on Telegram, adding that 28 drones were shot down as they approached.
He said 25 people were injured, 7 of them seriously. It was stated that most of these injuries were caused by shrapnel injuries.
He stated that this was the “largest and most inhumane” attack on the region in terms of the number of drones used and the number of deaths.
Meanwhile, Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobyov said that the condition of eight of those injured in the attack on the Wildberries warehouse in Elektrostal was “serious”.
He added that a total of 48 drones were shot down in the region overnight, and that a Russian oil depot had also been struck by a falling drone, which he described as the incident with “the most serious consequences”.
“Firefighters, emergency services and the Ministry of Emergencies continue to work at the scene,” he wrote on Telegram. He did not detail the level of damage. Zelensky also confirmed that Ukraine had hit “an oil facility.”
Ukraine has recently intensified long-range drone attacks on Russia’s critical energy infrastructure, resulting in widespread fuel shortages. Earlier this month, Kiev said that about 43% of Russia’s oil refining capacity was “disabled” as a result.
The BBC has not independently confirmed this figure.
Ukraine says Russian oil and gas facilities are legitimate targets because Moscow relies heavily on fossil fuel exports to finance its large-scale invasion, which began in February 2022.
Russian President Vladimir Putin He made a rare confession in June He claimed that fuel shortages were caused by attacks in Ukraine, and in early July signed into law a bill aimed at increasing supplies to the domestic fuel market.
