A Su-34 fighter-bombers crashed into a residential apartment building in the resort town of Yeysk, southern Russia on Monday evening.
Amateur footage filmed from a building across the street from the area where the plane is thought to have gone down shows a fireball burning in front of a nine story apartment complex, with repeated explosions going off and a plume of thick black smoke rising into the sky.
In a statement Monday evening, the Russian military confirmed that one of its Su-34 jets went down within Yeysk's city limits during a training flight, with its pilots successfully ejecting. The accident is thought to have been caused by the ignition of one of the plane's engines.
"According to a report by the pilots, who ejected, the crash was caused by the ignition of one of the plane's engines during takeoff," the MoD said. The ministry confirmed that the plane's onboard jet fuel ignited at the crash site after impact.
At least 17 apartments were damaged in the crash. Russia's Emergencies Ministry said Monday night that two people died and 15 were hospitalized in the incident.
