Video was captured by many onlookers as a meteor explosion occurred in the sky over Chelyabinsk, Russia, on Friday morning, injuring over 1,000 people and damaging numerous buildings, including a KHL arena.
According to the Associated Press, the meteor made a bright flash in the sky and injured hundreds of people due to flying glass and other debris. Video of the crash soon went viral and many were speculating about the damage and how it happened.
The damage was not limited civilian areas and buildings, as a KHL arena was also damaged. According to a statement, the Traktor Sport Palace, where the KHL's Traktor Chelyabinsk play their games, was damaged in the meteor crash and is now temporary closed.
The arena will now need a full inspection before it can open again and the check should occur over the weekend to see if the building can safely hold events. The damage could be a big issue in the KHL playoffs, as the arena is scheduled to host a game on Thursday. Traktor Chelyabinsk started its series on the road, but will be returning soon.
The reports initially had injuries at around 400, but that was upgraded as more news came in. The explosion surprised many people and also messed around with cell phone service for some time.
Here is a transcript of the full statement:
"The meteor shower which struck Chelyabinsk and its environs has also caused some disruption to the hockey season schedule. The emergency services have confirmed that the walls of the Arena Traktor were among those structures to suffer damage, and therefore large-scale events at the stadium have been postponed. The sporting facilities will undergo an inspection by experts to assess the readiness of the arena to return to full operational use.
The results of the assessment will be made public on Monday, after which it will become clear whether the Chelyabinsk club can stage the first games of the play-offs. The knockout stages of the Gagarin Cup get underway on Wednesday, and as Traktor is already assured of a top four place in the Eastern conference, the team is due to start the play-offs with home games on the 21st and 22nd of February.
At this time, the meteor shower has not affected Traktor's schedule, as the Chelyabinsk men finish their regular season campaign with a trip on the road to Magnitogorsk on Sunday. However, three events -today's and tomorrow's Youth Hockey League games between Belye Medvedi of Chelyabinsk and Magnitogorsk's Stalnye Lisy and Saturday's planned opening of the Traktor's museum - have had to be postponed."
