As a result of a blast on the firing ground in the Nizhny Novgorod region, six people were killed and 4 injured on Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

      The incident took place on the firing ground near the Mulino village, Nizhny Novgorod region. The ammunition blew up while being unloading by servicemen for further destruction.

      "Today we were going to utilize missile antitank weapon, which was about 40 years old. This weapon has an electronic system inside, so maybe it has been activated at the moment of unloading. It is a tragic coincidence," the head of the Western Military District press service, Andrei Bobrun, told the press. 

      “The injured have been taken to a garrison military hospital,” the ministry’s press service said.

      Military investigators are currently working at the scene. A Defense Ministry commission led by commander of the Western Military District Col-Gen Arkady Bakhin flew to the accident place.

      On the whole, there were 5 ammunition blasts on Russian firing grounds in 2011. The most destructive of them took place at an ammunition depot Ashuluk in the Astrakhan Region on August 23 when an artillery shell accidentally blew up causing a series of other explosions. Eight soldiers were killed and several dozens injured. 

Sources: RIA Novosti volga.ria.ru Lenta.ru Image: top.rbc.ru