Ukraine faces widespread power outages after Russia launched a massive air raid across the country overnight, killing at least two people, Ukrainian authorities said.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said nine regions of Ukraine were attacked, and the latest attack took place while many regions were asleep.
State energy company Centrenergo described the barrage as “the most extensive attack on our country’s thermal power plants since the beginning of a full-scale invasion.”
The Russian attack came as temperatures across Ukraine plunged into the single digits Celsius.
Energy Minister Svitlana Grinchuk said: “The enemy is once again launching a major attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.”
Emergency power outages have been introduced in many areas and will be lifted once the power system stabilizes, he added. Residents of Kiev are facing widespread power outages over the weekend, according to a schedule published by energy companies.
Two people were killed and 11 others injured in a drone attack on a nine-story apartment building in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro. A video captures the moment the drone crashed into the darkness.
“There’s nothing here, just normal buildings,” said a woman who identified herself as Maia.
“I don’t know how I survived, because all the debris flew onto the bed where I was sleeping,” said Larissa, another resident of the building.
“We quickly gathered and started going downstairs. People were screaming. We could already hear the screams coming from the street,” she added.
A total of 10 people have been killed and nearly 50 injured in Russian airstrikes in the past 24 hours, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.
The Ukrainian Air Force said it was able to intercept only nine of the 45 missiles launched by Russia, some of which were ballistic weapons. About 450 drones were also launched.
“26 missiles and 52 attack UAVs (drones) were recorded hitting 25 locations,” the report said, adding that most of the attacks occurred in the central regions of Poltava and Dnipropetrovsk, as well as Kiev.
“It is extremely difficult to counter ballistic missiles and air ballistic missiles,” President Zelenskiy said in his daily address late Saturday. “There are only a few systems in the world that can effectively intercept such missiles, and we need many more of these systems and many more missiles to protect our entire territory.”
Ukraine’s president said Kiev is cooperating with the United States to purchase additional Patriot air defense systems that have been proven capable of intercepting Russian missiles.
Ukraine is asking for more help from its allies to replenish its air defenses, as well as long-range missiles to attack Russian energy and military facilities. America’s request for Tomahawk missiles was rejected by President Donald Trump last month.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said the attack was carried out in response to a Ukrainian attack that included Kinzhal ballistic missiles and other weapons against “enterprises of the Ukrainian military-industrial complex and Ukrainian gas and energy facilities that supported its operations.”
Frequent attacks on energy have severely damaged Ukraine’s gas production and caused widespread power outages across the country. Ukrainian officials said they would have to rely on imports of expensive European gas to make up for the shortfall.
“Despite the enemy’s plans, Ukraine will enjoy light and heat this winter,” Energy Minister Grinchuk said.
Ukraine’s military and security services have stepped up drone and missile attacks in recent months on Russian infrastructure such as refineries, pipelines and pumping stations.
On Saturday, Ukrainian drones carried out what one Russian official described as a “massive attack” on energy facilities in the Volgograd region, a frequent target of Ukraine.
Regional governor Andrei Bocharov said an electrical substation was damaged and power was restored several hours after the strike.
