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Sabotage on the rails? 15 fuel cars off track, train driver dead near St Petersburg—Rosgvardia blown up by rail bomb in Oryol Oblast (video)
Two separate train derailments hit Russia’s Leningrad Oblast on 14 September—one involving 15 fuel tanker cars, the other killing a train driver. Just a day earlier, three Rosgvardiya personnel were killed by an explosive device planted on railway tracks in Oryol Oblast. Russian authorities are investigating all incidents as possible sabotage.
These instances of possible Ukrainian rail sabotage in Russia come amid Ukraine’s broader campaign to disrupt Russian military logistics in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. While recent long-range drone strikes have primarily targeted oil processing facilities and fuel transport infrastructure, railways have also seen increased targeting due to the Russian army’s heavy reliance on rail for movement. However, confirmed reports of physical sabotage on railway tracks remain relatively scarce compared to the frequency of drone attacks on trains and rail-linked power substations.
15 tankers derail in Luzhsky district
According to Russian Governor of Leningrad Oblast Alexandr Drozdenko, a locomotive pulling 15 empty tank cars derailed in Luzhsky district at the Stroganovo-Mshinskaya rail section. No casualties were reported. Drozdenko stated that two emergency recovery trains were dispatched from St. Petersburg to the site of the incident.
As a result of the derailment, train movement was blocked in two directions. Ten suburban electric trains were delayed or canceled.
Ukrainian Telegram channel Exilenova+ reported on the derailment, and another channel, Supernova+, claimed sabotage affected two separate railway segments in Leningrad Oblast—specifically in Luzhsky and Gatchina districts.
Train driver dies in second derailment near Semrino
Russian news Telegram channel Astra reported another derailment in the same oblast near the station of Semrino, located in Gatchina district. In this incident, a lone locomotive left the tracks. The train driver was trapped inside the cabin and later died in the ambulance, Astra wrote.
Governor Drozdenko confirmed that sappers were deployed to the scene. He also noted that investigators were examining the version of sabotage.
Ukraine’s drones hit deep—St Petersburg’s main fuel plant engulfed in flames (video)
Three Rosgvardiya members killed in Oryol Oblast rail explosion
On 13 September, an explosive device detonated on the Maloarkhangelsk–Glazunovka rail segment in Oryol Oblast, killing two Rosgvardia national guard members and injuring another. One day later, the injured officer died, bringing the total death toll to three.
Governor of Oryol Oblast Andrei Klychkov initially confirmed the deaths of two personnel, and a day later, he announced the third fatality. Acting Governor of Kursk Oblast Aleksandr Khinshtein later clarified that all three victims were Rosgvardiya officers.
Ukrainian drone strikes disrupt Russian rail traffic across multiple regions
Ukraine has intensified drone attacks on Russian railway infrastructure, triggering repeated disruptions to both military and civilian transport.
- On 3 September, a drone hit Kuteynikovo station in Rostov Oblast, damaging electrical systems and forcing a full evacuation. Twenty-six passenger trains were delayed.
- On 1 September, drones struck a transformer substation in Kropotkin, Krasnodar Krai, igniting a fire and disabling a major southern railway hub feeding occupied Crimea.
- On 21 August, a strike on the Zhuravka railway power substation in Voronezh Oblast caused a fire.
- Earlier, on 17 August, a drone hit Liski rail station in the same oblast, cutting power and disrupting southern rail traffic.
Russian Railways’ cargo volumes reportedly dropped 5.4% in August 2025 year-on-year, the third straight quarterly decline, with only 92.2 million tons moved amid mounting war costs and sanctions pressure.