Over a hundred thousand cartridges destroyed after fire at ammunition warehouse in central Romania
<p>Roughly 130,000 cartridges prepared for delivery were destroyed after a fire broke out at a warehouse part of the Cugir Mechanical Plant, in central Romania, on Saturday, August 2. No victims were reported, and an investigation is currently ongoing.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The fire started around 2 AM, initially over an area of 300 square meters, which later expanded to around 700. Residents near the hall were alerted via the Ro-Alert system. ISU also transmitted that “explosions could be heard within the area affected by the fire, but the intervention forces were stationed at a distance, in the safety zone.” By 8 AM, robot-assisted emergency crews managed to put out the flames.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Roughly 400,000 cartridges were stored in the destroyed warehouse, with an estimated value of EUR 5 million, according to <a href="https://www.biziday.ro/327003-2/">Biziday</a>. Authorities have launched an investigation into destruction by negligence.</p>
<p>After arriving at the scene, economy minister Radu Miruță refused to comment on the possibility of sabotage and noted that all options are being taken into consideration.</p>
<p>Later on, the official said that the damages amount to roughly EUR 400,000-500,000, but that ongoing contracts will not be impacted.&nbsp;</p>
<p>However, he stated that the fire manifested “aggressively” and that for four hours, boxes of cartridges exploded. “Simply put, box after box of cartridges exploded until around 4 in the morning, so for about four hours,” the minister said.&nbsp;No victims were reported, and the damages are relatively small.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Like many EU countries, Romania has been <a href="https://www.romania-insider.com/romania-usa-letters-ammunition-coproduction-may-2025">ramping up</a> its ammunition and defense production capabilities in recent years, following partnerships with the United States and European allies. The Cugir Plant produces 9 mm automatic and semi-automatic pistols, along with other accessories.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This is not the first incident to take place at the Cugir Plant, which was founded in 1799 as an iron foundry by the Austrian Empire. <a href="https://www.romania-insider.com/explosion-cugir-factory">Another fire</a> accompanied by explosions took place at the same factory in 2020, with two people injured.</p>
<p><em><a href="mailto:radu@romania-insider.com">radu@romania-insider.com</a></em></p>
<p><em>(Photo source: IGSU on Facebook video capture)</em></p>