Abandoned Military Unit 96558 (Buzuluksky Bor)

Abandoned military unit 96558 is a former artillery ammunition depot located on the border of the Orenburg and Samara regions near the Buzuluksky Bor national park. The site is primarily known for a major disaster that occurred on June 11, 2012, when a massive fire broke out on the premises. The blaze triggered a series of violent chain explosions of stored munitions, with shrapnel from the blasts traveling more than five kilometers.

The facility was situated near the settlement of 14 km and bordered the dense forests of the Buzuluksky Bor. The storage area, which included reinforced-concrete underground and above-ground bunkers, spanned approximately 83 hectares. Following the catastrophic event and subsequent explosions, the site was abandoned. Today, only ruins remain where munitions were once kept, with a few houses standing nearby that survived the blast.

The site is now a derelict zone and is no longer in use. It is located in a heavily wooded area, making it difficult to access for casual visitors. To reach the site, one can use the roads leading toward the Buzuluksky Bor national park.