Locals first reported on the incident at 9:30am (3: 30 GMT) local time, as people wrote on social media of hearing explosions, complained about blown-out windows and wondered about the cause of the disturbance.
'The most unusual morning ever -- to wake up from the wind and the rumble, to yell hysterically while all the family is running around shocked,' Nastya Grabluk wrote on Twitter minutes after the incident.
In the city of Chelyabinsk, many said they were shocked and frustrated this morning. 'I am still young, I don't want to die!' Zimnukhova Elena wrote on Twitter, adding: 'It is a nightmare... I am still shaking and sobbing periodically.'.