Details about the sinking of Russia’s Moskva flagship emerge
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Two Ukrainian Neptune missiles struck the Moskva late on April 13. Next day, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the ship had sunk due to a fire and the detonation of ammunition on board.
In the intercept, a Russian sailor aboard the sinking Moskva missile cruiser can be heard reporting extensive damage to the ship and requesting crew extraction.
“Moskva-1 – two (hull) breaches, the propeller has stopped, (the ship) is going to capsize,” the Moskva crew member says.
“(There is) a breach below the waterline, the ship is listing by 30 degrees; we can’t sail to meet up with tugboats, urgent crew evacuation is underway.”
Read also: Century-old Russian rescue ship ‘trying to salvage missiles’ from sunken Moskva – Bild
On April 16, Russia released a video allegedly featuring members of the Moskva’s crew rescued from the sinking ship. According to independent Russian news outlet The Insider, the video featured around 100 people. Radio Liberty later reported there was evidence the video may have been recorded before the ship sank.
According to the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, Oleksii Danilov, the Russian navy managed to rescue 58 out of the Moskva’s 510 crew members.
Read also: Russia hits Kyiv missile plant after flagship Moskva is sunk
The official Russian casualty figures include one dead and 27 MIA. Some media reports suggested that more than half of the cruiser’s crew were conscripts.
