Drone strike hits Wildberries logistics center in Russia's Tambov Oblast

26 August, 09:11 AM
Video
A woman watches a fire at a Wildberries warehouse near the village of Novosaratovka in Leningrad Oblast following a Ukrainian drone attack on July 24, 2026 (Photo: SOPA Images via Reuters)

A woman watches a fire at a Wildberries warehouse near the village of Novosaratovka in Leningrad Oblast following a Ukrainian drone attack on July 24, 2026 (Photo: SOPA Images via Reuters)

Drones struck a Wildberries logistics center in Russia’s Kotovsk, Tambov Olbast, overnight on August 26, sparking a large-scale fire, according to independent monitoring channels.

Regional governor Yevgeny Pervyshov confirmed the attack.

“Ukrainian drone strikes caused a large fire at a Wildberries logistics center. The fire spread across more than 100,000 square meters,” Pervyshov said.

Wildberries also confirmed the attack on its warehouse.

“New deliveries were not being accepted at the facility,” the company said in a statement.

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Local residents also reported hearing explosions near the facility.

The Kotovsk facility is one of Wildberries primary logistics hubs in Central Russia, according to independent monitoring channel Exilenova+. The center opened in 2025 and was designed to store up to 54 million items once fully operational.

The Kotovsk center was previously targeted on July 18. That attack sparked a fire that killed seven employees and temporarily forced the facility to suspend operations.

Strikes on Wildberries

The Ukrainian Armed Forces began striking Wildberries logistics centers on July 18. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry reported on August 16 that Ukrainian forces had disabled seven of the company’s 10 largest logistics centers.

Agentstvo, citing a source close to the Kremlin, reported that Russia could face a wave of bankruptcies among sellers operating through Wildberries.

Sergei Semko, a lead analyst at the research firm Data Insight, estimated that Wildberries had sustained direct infrastructure losses of 147 billion to 223 billion rubles, or $1.75 billion to $2.65 billion, by mid-August.

Head of the Association of Suppliers for Online Marketplaces Margarita Yevstigneyeva estimated that sellers sustained $7.14 billion to $8.3 billion in losses following the strikes.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin said Ukrainian strikes on Wildberries warehouses had caused no “critical consequences.”

“There are no critical consequences from such attacks. There have not been any, and there cannot be any,” Putin said.

He added that logistics and warehouse capacity damaged in the attacks would need to be rebuilt, including with state support.

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