Four people were killed and twelve others injured in a Russian drone attack on Kyiv on Wednesday evening. The BBC reported this, citing the authorities. On Thursday morning, 8 October, Russian drones attacked the Ukrainian capital again.
In one city district, a drone hit a high-rise building. A fire broke out, and parts of the structure around the tenth floor were destroyed. In a damaged flat, rescue workers found the bodies of two victims. 22 people were rescued from the building, including eight children. Four other residents were injured, including two children. Psychologists from the state civil protection service provided support to twelve residents of the building.
In other city districts, drone debris damaged houses and triggered fires. In the Obolon district, two more people died. Among the injured was a young woman. She was found next to a burning car and was in a serious condition.
Power cuts, no funicular, water pressure drops
The attack also caused problems with the power supply. On the right bank of Kyiv, electric public transport and the funicular were temporarily stopped, and emergency shutdowns were introduced in the city. The power cuts also caused disruptions to the water supply. The company “Kyivvodokanal” reported reduced pressure in the network of the right-bank part of the city. In the Sviatoshyn, Solomianka, Shevchenko and Holosiiv districts, water may be temporarily unavailable in some buildings.
In the morning, Russian drones attacked Kyiv again. In the Holosiiv district, debris from a drone fell onto an open area. Emergency services are on site. The emergency shutdowns in Kyiv have now been lifted. On the right bank of the capital, there are still problems with water. “Kyivvodokanal” reports lower pressure in the network. In some buildings, water may be temporarily unavailable. A normal water supply will only be possible after the power supply has been restored, the company said.
Putin’s birthday, 25 dead nationwide
The attack on Kyiv comes in a week of heavy Russian air strikes. As the Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) reported on Wednesday, 7 October, Russia has for the first time this autumn subjected Ukraine to a combined attack of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and combat drones. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke on the evening of at least 25 dead and more than 100 injured. In the city of Pryluky alone, at least 19 people were killed and 55 others injured, as Zelenskyy announced. Among the dead were five children, and five children were injured. In the city, located about 120 kilometres east of Kyiv, a five-storey residential block was hit. People are still believed to be trapped under the rubble. From Kremenchuk, 47 injured were reported after a Russian drone attack. In the central Kirovohrad oblast, two people died in an attack on an unspecified facility, and three were injured.
Zelenskyy called the attack a “birthday present for Putin”. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, who ordered the war against Ukraine, turned 74 on Wednesday. The date coincides with the 20th anniversary of the death of Kremlin-critical journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was murdered in Moscow in 2006.
The main target of the Russian attacks was the energy infrastructure, Zelenskyy wrote on the platform X. Ukraine fears that Russia, as in previous winters, aims to cripple the energy supply. The Russian military in Moscow spoke of attacks on production facilities of the missile and drone manufacturer Fire Point in Kyiv and other cities. According to the statements, the Ukrainian capital was a focal point of the massive air strike. In the early morning hours, many explosions were heard, as the portal “Kyiv Independent” reported. “The missiles are striking one after another. As far as I can count, there are at least ten to twelve explosions. It is quite loud in the city centre,” a reporter said.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported at least two dead in the morning. They were found in the rubble of garages in the eastern Darnytsia district. Two other people were rescued alive there. In the Obolon district, buildings not used for residential purposes were hit. In the Podil district, warehouses were hit. In the afternoon, there was another death after a new Russian attack. According to Zelenskyy, the Russian armed forces used 70 ballistic missiles and cruise missiles of various types. The Ukrainian air force said 39 of them were intercepted. The industrial cities of Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia were also heavily shelled, according to the reports. Deaths were also reported from the city of Oleksandriia in central Ukraine.
Ukraine has been defending itself against an invasion by Russian forces for more than four and a half years. Zelenskyy spoke of counterattacks on Russian oil facilities and other targets in Perm, Samara and Astrakhan. He posted on X the video of an oil tanker on the Black Sea off Sochi that had caught fire the previous day.
