5 Russian nuclear engineers buried after rocket explosion

Thousands of Russians attended the funerals of five Russian nuclear engineers killed by an explosion as they tested a new rocket engine, a tragedy that fuelled radiation fears and raised new questions about a secretive weapons programme.

The engineers, who died on Thursday, were laid to rest on Monday in Sarov, which hosts Russia's main nuclear weapons research centre, where they worked.

Flags flew at half-staff in the city, located 370 km east of Moscow, which has served as a base for Russia's nuclear weapons programme since the late 1940s. The coffins were displayed at Sarov's main square before being driven to a cemetery.

The Defense Ministry initially reported that the explosion at the navy's testing range near the village of Nyonoksa in the northwestern Arkhangelsk region killed two people and injured six others.

The state-controlled Rosatom nuclear corporation then said over the weekend that the blast also killed five of its workers and injured three others.

It's not clear what the final toll is.

The company said the victims were on a sea platform testing a rocket engine and were thrown into the sea by explosion.

Rosatom director Alexei Likhachev praised the victims as "true heroes" and "pride of our country."
"Our further work on new weapons that we will certainly complete will be the best tribute to them," Likhachev said during the funeral, according to Rosatom. "We will fulfil the motherland's orders and fully protect its security."
US President Donald Trump weighed in Monday on the blast, tweeting, "The United States is learning much from the failed missile explosion in Russia. We have similar, though more advanced, technology. The Russian 'Skyfall' explosion has people worried about the air around the facility, and far beyond. Not good!"
Sergei Kirienko, Putin's deputy chief of staff who previously led Rosatom, said at the funeral that the victims were aware of the danger, but "took the risk, realizing that no one else would do the job better than them."