On Saturday, Russia launched a missile and drone attack on energy facilities in five regions of Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian national grid operator Ukrenergo, the affected areas included eastern Donetsk, southeastern Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk, the central Kirovohrad region, and the western Ivano-Frankivsk region. The attack was part of a pattern of similar strikes on civilian energy infrastructure that have been ongoing since March.
The Kyiv Independent reported that at least 20 people were injured in the attacks, including children. Ukrainian air defenses were able to intercept and shoot down a significant number of Russian missiles and drones, but the damage was still substantial. Russia’s increased bombing of Ukraine’s power infrastructure has resulted in blackouts and forced the country to rely heavily on electricity imports.
DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, confirmed that two of its thermal power plants were hit during the attack, resulting in serious damage to equipment. Regional officials reported that firefighters were working to extinguish fires in multiple locations following the strikes. Thankfully, there have been no reports of casualties so far. It is clear that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues to escalate, with significant impact on critical infrastructure and civilian populations.
