SOFIA — Bulgarian authorities are investigating whether a fire and subsequent explosion at an EMKO ammunition and explosives warehouse was an accident, a security failure or deliberate sabotage, following a series of previous incidents involving the country’s defence industry.

The latest incident occurred at around 11 p.m. on September 11 near Gorni Varpishta, in the Dryanovo area of central Bulgaria. The fire broke out at warehouse No. 12 before an explosion followed.

Employees reportedly detected the fire through surveillance cameras and evacuated the facility in accordance with emergency procedures. No casualties were reported.

Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said investigators would examine the latest incident alongside previous fires and explosions at EMKO and other Bulgarian defence companies to determine whether the cases are connected or display a common pattern.

Bulgarian authorities have not ruled out the possibility of outside interference, while also examining storage conditions and security arrangements at facilities holding ammunition and explosives.

EMKO calls incident sabotage

EMKO has gone further, saying the explosion was the result of sabotage and that human error can be ruled out.

According to the company, the warehouse had not been used for several months and no unauthorised individuals had access to it. EMKO also said the facility had been inspected seven times by Bulgaria’s Interior Ministry since the beginning of the year.

The company said the most recent inspection took place just 20 days before the explosion and found the facility to be fully compliant with regulations, with no violations recorded.

EMKO has described the latest incident as part of a wider pattern, pointing to more than 10 explosions and other incidents involving Bulgaria’s defence industry since 2011. The company says none of those investigations has been successfully concluded.

Previous incidents and alleged Russian links

EMKO is owned by Bulgarian arms trader Emilian Gebrev, whom Bulgarian prosecutors have previously alleged was targeted by Russian operatives.

In 2024, Bulgaria issued arrest warrants for six Russian nationals accused of involvement in earlier explosions at EMKO weapons depots between 2011 and 2020.

Prosecutors have also linked those investigations to the attempted poisoning of Gebrev in 2015 and to ammunition depot explosions in the Czech Republic in 2014.

The latest explosion came only weeks after another incident at an EMKO warehouse on August 10. That explosion also resulted in no casualties.

Bulgaria orders nationwide inspections

Following the latest incident, Bulgaria is preparing a nationwide inspection of ammunition and explosives storage facilities.

Demerdzhiev said every ammunition depot in the country would be inspected, with authorities examining storage conditions, security measures and the protection of the facilities.

President Iliana Yotova has also said she is considering establishing a National Security Advisory Council, citing the increasing frequency of explosions at ammunition depots.

For now, however, the cause of the September 11 explosion remains under investigation.

EMKO maintains that the incident was sabotage. Bulgarian authorities have not ruled out outside interference, but have yet to establish who may have been responsible or whether the latest explosion is connected to previous incidents.