The death toll from the Russian air strike on the settlement of Komyshuvakha in Zaporizhzhia Oblast has risen to 55. As the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (DSNS) reported on Saturday morning, rescue workers recovered the bodies and remains of nine more people from the rubble within a day. This is reported by the news agency Interfax-Ukraine, citing the authority.
The attack on the school, where humanitarian aid was being distributed on 2 November, is thus five days ago. On Friday, the head of the regional military administration, Mykhailo Semikin, had still reported 53 dead on Telegram, after the authority had previously counted 50 victims. On 5 November, according to the DSNS, there were 43 dead. The search continues: despite difficult conditions and the constant danger of further Russian attacks, rescue workers and dog teams continued clearing the destroyed parts of the building and searching the grounds, the DSNS reported.
Repeated strikes on the shelter
According to the authorities, Russian troops carried out several attacks with glide bombs on the school in Komyshuvakha on 2 November, around 20 kilometres from the front line. Initially FAB-500 bombs were dropped, later also FAB-3000, the acting head of the regional administration, Mykhailo Semikin, reported. According to information from the region, the three-tonne FAB-3000 contains almost one and a half tonnes of explosives.
People had sought refuge in a shelter, whereupon nine more bombs fell specifically on this bunker, Interfax-Ukraine reported. According to the news outlet Ukrainska Pravda, the underground facility was used as a distribution point for humanitarian aid; until February 2026 an “underground school” had operated there, after which classes were stopped. According to earlier reports, the dead include two rescue workers and four police officers.
Mourning and questions still open
A three-day period of mourning has been in force in the region since 3 November. The attack is considered one of the most severe on Zaporizhzhia Oblast since the start of the Russian invasion. How many people are still lying under the rubble is not quantified in the current reports; most recently there was talk of about 30 possibly buried, and seven previously missing persons were found alive.
The authorities are continuing the search as long as finds are possible. For the relatives, this means further days of waiting – and the certainty that the death toll can rise further. The DSNS figures from Saturday morning are the highest level so far; there is no official confirmation that the search has been completed.
Earlier coverage: 53 bodies recovered from school ruins in Komyshuvakha
