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The appearance of a giant mushroom cloud over a Russian city has sparked panic - with social media in a flurry about whether World War III is starting.

The mass cloud in Tyumen in south central Russia was spotted and shot by amateur photographers across the area, with images quickly going viral online.

Instagram user Alexander Bogdanov posted a picture with the caption: "World War III has begun. I photographed it from my window."

(Image: CEN)

MyraYer posted online: "Crazy b******s!!! This is the end," while Oleg Alexeeva tweeted: "Oh, God save us. What have they done?!!!"

The huge cloud stopped motorists on roads around the town, who took pictures and feared the worst.

But a man told the Daily Star: "I think someone would have said something if we suddenly found ourselves under nuclear attack.

(Image: CEN)

"We can’t rule out the possibility that it was a missile test, but I don’t think so."

The relationship between Vladamir Putin's men and America has been deteriorating, with the British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond commenting on the "worrying signs" on Russia's nuclear.

This week officials in the U.K. announced Britain may be pressured into giving berth for American nuclear missiles in what could end up as a Cold War-style arms race.

(Image: CEN)

The only two nuclear missiles ever used in war were dropped by America in the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where they caused mass destruction and 129,000 people.

There has been no official word on what caused the cloud to form over Tyumen.