Russian Meteor: Chelyabinsk Cleaning Up After Meteor Blast
Meteor Scramble: Hunt Begins for Pricey Space Rocks
A day after a massive meteor exploded over this city in central Russia, a monumental cleanup effort is under way.
Authorities have deployed around 24,000 troops and emergencies responders to help in the effort.
Officials say more than a million square feet of windows — the size of about 20 football fields — were shattered by the shockwave from the meteor’s blast. Around 4,000 buildings in the area were damaged.
The injury toll climbed steadily on Friday. Authorities said today it now stands at more than 1,200. Most of those injuries were from broken glass, and only a few hundred required hospitalization.
According to NASA, this was the biggest meteor to hit Earth in more than a century. Preliminary figures suggest it was 50 feet wide and weighed more than the Eiffel Tower.
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