In September 1999, a series of explosions hit four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow, and Volgodonsk, killing more than 300, injuring more than 1,000, and spreading a wave of fear across the country. The bombings, together with the Invasion of Dagestan, triggered the Second Chechen War. The handling of the crisis by Vladimir Putin, who was prime minister at the time, boosted his popularity greatly and helped him attain the presidency within a few months.

Volgodonsk is a city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located in the east of the oblast on the west bank of the Tsimlyansk Reservoir. Population: 170,841 (2010 Russian census); 165,994 (2002 Census); 175,593 (1989 Soviet census); 28,000 (1970).