Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said on August 13 that eight people are still missing following an explosion at or near an optical-mechanical plant in the city of Sergiyev Posad that killed at least one person and injured dozens more.
Five of the 50 or so people confirmed injured were said to be in intensive care at a local hospital in the area, which is about 70 kilometers outside the capital, Moscow.
Rescue workers said that they have wound up operations.
Some sources, including the Baza independent Telegram channel that was among the first to report details of the incident, have claimed that corpses or body parts were removed from the scene and that the death toll could be in double figures.
But officials have confirmed the death of just one person, a woman who reportedly died after being taken to the hospital.
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One Killed, Dozens Injured In Massive Explosion At Optical Plant Outside Moscow
Russian authorities have said an explosion occurred in a pyrotechnics warehouse leased to a company called Piro-Ross. They say the warehouse is located on the premises of the Zagorsk Optical and Mechanical Plant, which produces night-vision equipment for tanks as well as optical devices for law enforcement and the health-care industry.
Early eyewitness reports identified the location of the blast as the optical plant.
The Russian Federal Investigative Committee has announced a search of the Piro-Ross offices and the detention of Piro-Ross's technical director in connection with a criminal case launched into the incident.
A Piro-Ross employee identified as Sergei Chankayev told media the day of the explosion that the blast didn't happen at the warehouse but in a neighboring building where no explosives were stored. He also suggested a sound thought to be that of a drone was heard before the explosion.
After speaking to investigators, the Russian news outlet Kommersant reported, Chankayev said he had no idea how or why the explosion happened.
Officials have not said whether investigators have ruled out sabotage.
Russia's emergency services have been quoted as rejecting speculation that a Ukrainian or other unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) might have sparked the blast.
There has been a spate of drone attacks inside Russia since May, as the country's 17-month-old full-scale invasion of Ukraine continues.
An unexplained fire damaged the same Zagorsk plant in June 2022.
Ukrainian officials have generally avoided publicly confirming any role in suspected drone or other operations that strike across the countries' internationally recognized border.