Russia has confirmed the first drone attack against a logistics complex belonging to the major online retailer Ozon. The strike comes amid a weeks-long Ukrainian campaign against similar facilities belonging to Wildberries. Overnight into Aug. 22, the Ozon warehouse in Chapayevsk, Samara Region, was hit, triggering a large-scale fire on the premises. Regional governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev reported several casualties.
According to Fedorishchev, the Samara Region came under a mass attack overnight, with Russian forces and mobile fire units shooting down and suppressing several dozen Ukrainian drones. In addition to the Ozon facility, the Kuybyshev oil refinery was also damaged.
The fire broke out at Ozon’s distribution complex in the Chapayevsk industrial park on Industrialnaya Street. Ukrainian monitoring channels published footage of the attack and the subsequent fire. According to Ukrainian channel Supernova+, the complex has a floor area of approximately 135,000 square meters, making it Ozon's fifth-largest warehouse in Russia.
As the independent outlet ASTRA notes, two defense industry enterprises — JSC Promsintez and JSC Polimer — are located in immediate proximity to the warehouse, about one kilometer away. Promsintez produces, among other things, TNT, ammonites and nitrobenzene, while Polimer manufactures weapons, ammunition, and explosives for the military. Both facilities have previously come under attack.
In addition, last night a fire broke out at the Novokuybyshevsk oil refinery, also located in the Samara Region. ASTRA identified the location of the fire from footage published by eyewitnesses. The plant belongs to Rosneft and has come under attack multiple times. Following a strike on April 18, both of the plant's primary oil processing units were shut down, according to Reuters.
Until now, Wildberries had been the primary target of Ukrainian strikes against Russia’s commercial infrastructure. By Aug. 19, The Insider had counted that 21 of the company's facilities had been hit across 16 Russian regions and annexed Simferopol, affecting a combined floor area of approximately 2.3 million square meters. Fourteen facilities totaling around 1.77 million square meters sustained significant damage, forcing some operations to be relocated to other sites.
