Drone strike sparks fire at Russia's Afipsky oil refinery

A fire broke out at the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia's southern Krasnodar region early Wednesday after it was targeted by a drone attack, local officials said.

The Krasnodar regional operational headquarters reported that the blaze was triggered by falling drone debris.

"Fragments of a UAV fell on the territory of the Afipsky refinery. There were no casualties and no damage to the core infrastructure.

The fire was promptly extinguished," the statement said. Separately, authorities noted that debris from a downed drone damaged two private houses in Primorsko-Akhtarsk.

Russia has stepped up air defense in the region as Ukraine continues to target energy infrastructure essential to the Russian military's fuel supply.