There was an explosion in russia of a liquid propellant rocket engine. Five people died in the accident but it did not release any dangerous substance. It happened in the course of a test at one of Russia’s military bases in the far north. Soon after the explosion, the Defense Ministry indicated deaths of two people with four others injured. However, there is no clarity on whether the five deaths now cited was in addition to the casualties indicated earlier. US experts are following the matter. They blame the testing of a nuclear-powered Cruise Missile for the tragedy.

Daily Mail UK quotes a representative for Severodvinsk as saying that there was a “short-term” spike in background radiation after the explosion. Severodvinsk is a city located near the test site and has a population of 185,000. A section of experts hold different views. They feel there would be no radiation from the explosion of liquid rocket propellant. In their opinion, it could happen if there was a mishap involving a nuclear-powered cruise missile.

Reaction by the United States

An official of the Federation of American Scientists says, “Liquid fuel missile engines exploding do not give off radiation.” It is a fact that the Russians are doing some work on introducing nuclear propulsion for a cruise missile.

A senior Trump administration official added that there is continuous monitoring of such activities. Therefore, when Moscow says ''everything is normal'' it lacks conviction. Russia is a superpower like the United States and both love to keep their defense-related activities under wraps.

Daily Mail UK adds that there was an explosion in 1986 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

It was in the former Soviet republic of Ukraine. That explosion released radioactive airborne contamination for about nine days. It was the worst nuclear accident in history but there was a delay in revealing the extent of damage. Moscow guards its secrets and outsiders can only resort to guesswork. However, President Vladimir Putin dropped hints about the nuclear-powered cruise missile during a speech in March 2018.

It was tested in late 2017 and Putin was upbeat about the weapon that would add more power to Russia’s arsenal.

Explosion at Russia’s Arctic naval base

According to the BBC, five people lost their lives and three suffered injuries when a rocket exploded at an Arctic naval test range in Russia. The state nuclear company Rosatom, confirmed that the accident occurred when a liquid propellant rocket engine was undergoing a test. It was at the site in Nyonoksa that conducts tests on most of the missile systems used by the Russian navy. The city of Severodvinsk lies east of Nyonoksa and authorities have revealed a temporary increase in radiation levels shortly after the blast. This is the second accident involving Russia's military this week. The previous one was a fire in Siberia. One person died and eight others were injured in the blaze at an ammunition dump. It led to the evacuation of more than 9,500 people.
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