Newsletters
A Russian attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure killed two people and caused widespread power outages across several regions, Ukrainian officials said Saturday.
Authorities reported emergency electricity cuts, heating disruptions, and damage to critical facilities amid escalating Russian strikes targeting Ukraine’s energy grid.
According to Ukraine’s air force, Russia launched 458 drones and 45 missiles overnight, of which 406 drones and nine missiles were intercepted.
A drone strike on the eastern city of Dnipro tore through a nine-story building, killing two people and injuring six others, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said.
Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said Russian strikes “once again targeted people's everyday life,” destroying infrastructure and disrupting power, water, and heating supplies, as well as damaging railway networks.
Emergency power cuts were reported in several areas, including Kharkiv, where the mayor cited a “noticeable shortage of electricity.”
In Kremenchuk, located in the eastern Poltava region, local officials said the city was without electricity, water, and partial heating.
Restoration Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said there were also significant train delays after attacks on locomotive depots. “We are working to eliminate the consequences throughout the country. The focus is on the rapid restoration of heat, light, and water,” Svyrydenko added.
In southern Odesa, regional governor Oleg Kiper said drones hit an energy infrastructure facility late Friday, though no casualties were reported.
Russia’s defense ministry confirmed that its forces targeted “enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex and gas and energy facilities that support their operation.”
Experts have warned that Ukraine faces a high risk of heating outages as the war approaches its fourth winter. Kyiv’s School of Economics estimated that recent strikes shut down half of the country’s natural gas production.
Ukraine’s top energy expert, Oleksandr Kharchenko, said Kyiv could face a “technological disaster” if two key power and heating plants were offline for more than three days during subzero temperatures.
Ukraine has also increased its own drone strikes on Russian oil depots and refineries, including in Russia’s southern Volgograd region, where governor Andrei Botcharov said similar attacks caused power cuts Friday evening.
2 min read
