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Emergency Service of the State of Ukraine / Reuters
Authorities evacuated residents of the area surrounding the base
Explosions and gunfire hit an ammunition depot in Ukraine, officials said, resulting in the evacuation of thousands of people.
Videos on social media showed the fire and explosions on the horizon near Ichnya, in the Chernihiv region.
About 10,000 people were displaced from the depot, about 176 km northeast of the capital Kiev, emergency services said.
For the moment, nothing is known about the victims or the cause of the explosions.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman tweeted that local authorities would provide accommodation for the evacuees and that emergency services were available to the people.
The first explosion at the base occurred around 03:30 local time (00:30 GMT).
From 04:22, an airspace closure within a radius of 20 km came into force, announced the emergency services. The rail and road links in the region are also suspended.
Explosions of ammunition dumps have already taken place in Ukraine, as the country continues its fight against pro-Russian separatists in its eastern regions.
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In September 2017, 28,000 people were evacuated after a huge fire at an arms depot in central Ukraine. In March of the same year, an ammunition depot on a base near Kharkiv was the victim of a series of explosions.
Moscow denies sending troops and arms to help the separatists in the conflict, but admits that Russian "volunteers" are helping the rebels.
