MELBOURNE A fire broke out late on Saturday after an accident at a gas pipeline near the village of Vinogradnoye in Moscow-annexed Crimea, spreading to nearby forest and cutting gas to the resort town of Alushta and more than a dozen settlements, Russian officials said.

"There is no threat to the populated area," Russia's emergency ministry said early on Sunday on the Telegram messaging app.

Russia-installed officials of the Crimean Peninsula reported late on Saturday on Telegram that gas supplies were cut to Alushta, a city of around 30,000 people, and 14 nearby settlements.

"After the gas in the pipes completely burns out, restoration work will begin," the Russian-installed administration of Crimea said on Telegram.

Russian agencies reported, citing officials, that there were no injuries. The fire was consuming an area of about 1,500 square metres (16,000 square feet), TASS state news agency reported.

It was not immediately clear what accident caused the fire.

  - Reuters