The Emergency Ministry said the incident was caused by a shower of meteorite debris. Unconfirmed reports suggested that a meteorite was shot down by Russian air defenses. Multiple dashboard videos appeared online, showing huge fireballs flying over buildings and exploding with a strong blast. A local zinc factory was the worst-hit, with some of its walls collapsed.
Fireball explosion wreaks havoc across region.
‘Shock and frustration’: Locals report on meteorite crash in Russian Urals (VIDEO)
13:20 GMT: The number of people injured in the meteorite blast has risen to 950, Governor of Chelyabinsk Region Mikhail Yurevitch said.
13:10 GMT: Roscosmos said they did not track the meteorite that fell near Chelyabinsk. “Our ground facilities and, as I understand, those abroad too did not the monitor this celestial body,” the agency spokesman said.
13:02 GMT: Nearly 3,000 buildings in Chelyabinsk were damaged to varying extents by the meteor shower, including 34 medical facilities and 361 schools and kindergartens, the city administration’s website reported. The total amount of window glass shattered amounts to 100,000 square meters, the site said, citing city administration head Sergey Davydov.
12:52 GMT: The meteorite’s combustion products won’t stay in the atmosphere for long, and will soon come down with the rain, Russian scientists said. The 50-ton meteorite is believed to have caused no radioactive or chemical pollution.
12:49 GMT: There’s practically “no chance” such incident could happen in the region again, the Russian Academy of Sciences said. Roshydromet monitoring systems have detected flybys of several meteorites overnight and in the morning.
A hole in Chebarkul Lake made by meteorite debris. Photo by Chebarkul town head Andrey Orlov.
12:24 GMT: The military had nothing to do with the aerial meteorite explosion, the Urals Emergency Ministry said: "Russia's defense ministry took no action connected to the incident. No aircrafts has been registered in the air at the given period of time." Earlier, there were unconfirmed reports that the military had shot down the falling meteorite, shattering it into pieces.
12:21 GMT: Vladimir Puchkov, the head of the Russian Emergency Ministry, is flying to Chelyabinsk to hold an emergency meeting with regional governor Mikhail Yurevich concerning the meteor shower incident, which injured over 725 people.
Weather sattelite Meteosat 10 has taken an image of the meteriote shortly after entering the atmosphere.(Copyright 2013 © EUMETSAT)
12:01 GMT: The site where the meteorite is believed to have fallen has been closed off by military units wearing special protective suits.
12:00 GMT: Three municipalities of the Chelyabinsk region have declared a state of emergency. "8 out of 43 municipalities have considerably suffered from the fall of space debris, 3 are in state of emergency," Emergency Ministry spokesperson Igor Murog said.
11:42 GMT: A phone hotline has been launched for Chelyabinsk residents seeking psychological care.
11:40 GMT: Two people injured in the meteorite incident are in intensive care, RIA Novosti reported, citing Chelyabinsk officials.
11:36 GMT: Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s Emergency Ministry to evaluate the damage caused by the meteorite incident, and to provide victims with all necessary aid. He said that the “astronomic aspect of the incident” is of particular interest, because analysis of the Chelyabinsk meteorite fall could help prevent future such incidents and alert residents in advance.
11:33 GMT: At least 297 apartment buildings were damaged from the meteorite fall in the Chelyabinsk region, an Emergency Ministry spokesperson told Russia 24 TV.
11:30 GMT: Parts of the Chelyabinsk meteorite are 'on sale' on some Russian websites. "Will sell meteorite pieces cheap, photos later," an announcement read.
11:19 GMT: The Russian military has explored a meteorite crater that is reportedly 6 meters in diameter; normal radiation levels were detected at the site.
11:12 GMT: Nearly 725 people have requested medical assistance in regions hit by the meteor shower.
11:10 GMT: The meteorite blast in the Chelyabinsk region may be connected to the 2012DA14 asteroid, which will pass close to Earth tonight, Tatyana Borisevich from Pulkovo Observatory told Itar-Tass.
11:00 GMT: Gas has been shut off in hundreds of Chelyabinsk homes after a security system shut it down due to the explosion.
10:55 GMT: The meteorite explosion sent animals in the Chelyabinsk zoo into a panic. Wolves and horses were reportedly the most agitated, but have now been calmed.
10:46 GMT: The meteorite has stirred up the Twitter community, becoming one of the most-discussed topics and prompting the creation of several parody accounts. More than 10 different Twitter accounts have been already registered for the meteorite that hit the Russian Urals. “So where can I go here on Friday night? Except for the factory?” one of the accounts said.
People look at damage to a shop following sightings of a falling object in the sky in the Urals city of Chelyabinsk February 15, 2013. A powerful blast rocked the Russian region of the Urals early on Friday with bright objects, identified as possible meteorites, falling from the sky, emergency officials said.(Reuters / Andrei Kuzmin)
10:44 GMT: The meteorite weighed 10 tons before it entered Earth’s atmosphere, the Russian Academy of Science said.
10:43 GMT: Before falling to earth, the meteorite exploded nine times, starting at an altitude of 55 kilometers, Lifenews reported quoting a source in Emergencies Ministry.
10:33 GMT: The number of those hospitalized has risen to 112, with nearly 550 people seeking treatment for minor injuries.
10:19 GMT: Three areas where meteorite debris fell have been discovered by emergency teams, police reported.
10:18 GMT: 84 children were among the hundreds injured by the Urals meteor shower.
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