Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Central Bank spent approximately 27 billion dollars of its U.S. dollar reserves between the 1st of October 1997 and the 17th of August 1998 to maintain a fixed exchange rate band. This policy forced the government to defend the ruble despite warnings from economists like Andrei Illarionov, which ultimately eroded investor confidence.
On the 17th of August 1998, the Russian government devalued the ruble and defaulted on domestic debt while declaring a moratorium on foreign debt repayment. The State Duma approved Yevgeny Primakov as Prime Minister on the 11th of September 1998 following political instability after this event.
By the 21st of September 1998, the exchange rate reached 21 rubles for one US dollar, meaning the currency lost two-thirds of its value in less than a month. Inflation in 1998 reached 84 percent while welfare costs grew considerably during this period.
Many banks including Inkombank, Oneximbank, and Tokobank closed as a result of the crisis. Bankers Trust suffered major losses in the summer of 1998 but avoided collapse by being acquired by Deutsche Bank for 10 billion dollars in November 1998.
Russian inflation reached 84 percent in 1998 while monthly interest payments on debt rose to 40 percent higher than tax collections by June 1998. Approximately 12.5 billion dollars was owed to Russian workers by the 1st of August 1998, leading to strikes that blocked the Trans-Siberian Railway.