On the night of March 23, an unknown drone was recorded crashing and exploding in Lithuania near the border with Belarus. The incident occurred on Lake Lavisas near the village of the same name, and the moment of the explosion was captured on a surveillance camera, which was also equipped with a microphone — the video clearly captures the sound of the drone’s motor, followed by the explosion a few minutes later.
This is reported by Finway
Circumstances of the Drone Crash
According to local residents, the explosion was so powerful that windows shook in the houses. Witnesses reported hearing a characteristic hum around 3 a.m., followed by a loud explosion 15 seconds later. One of the eyewitnesses, Vytautas Labednikas, a property owner in the village of Zhiurai, noted that the drone flew very low over his house before the explosion occurred. In the morning, he went to the village of Lavisas and saw that police and rescuers were already working on the ice of the lake.
“The explosion was so loud that even the windows shook. So I went outside just to take a look, but it was quiet, and nothing was visible. In the morning, I drove to look in one direction, then another, where it could have been. I drove 3 kilometers to the village of Lavisas and saw that police and rescuers were already on the lake. They said something had fallen,” Labednikas recounted.
At the crash site, a large hole formed in the ice. Lithuanian military confirmed that debris was present at the site, and police, rescuers, and military personnel were working there. A military helicopter was also dispatched to the scene for additional surveillance. It was noted that the radars of the Lithuanian armed forces did not detect the drone in the country’s airspace.
Expert Assessments and Government Response
Experts with experience in Ukraine during the war do not rule out that it could be a “Shahed” type drone, known in Russia as “Gerbera.” Preliminary data suggests that the object may have crossed the state border of Lithuania and crashed in the Varėna district. At the scene, an internal combustion engine, metal and plastic parts have already been discovered, while no explosives have been found so far, but search operations are ongoing. Major Gintautas Čunys of the Lithuanian armed forces emphasized that due to the partial melting of the ice, it is difficult to reach all the debris, and the examination of the remains will continue.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė announced that an urgent national security commission would convene to analyze the incident. Minister of National Defense Robertas Šapronas stressed that due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the risk of similar situations remains high, which is why Lithuania is investing in strengthening air defense and improving surveillance systems. He also announced a visit to Ukraine to discuss innovative solutions in the field of air defense.
Experts note that Russia supplies Iran not only with intelligence data but also with upgraded “Shahed” type drones.
