Thousands of Ukrainians Left Without Electricity following Russian Assaults
In a series of escalating events, Russia has targeted critical infrastructure in Ukraine, particularly the energy sector, causing widespread power outages and damage to several regions.
Overnight, four facilities of the largest Ukrainian power producer, DTEK, were attacked, resulting in power disruptions for over 29,000 households in the Odessa region and an additional 30,000 households in the Chernihiv region. The port city of Chornomorsk, a primary target, reported damage to residential and administrative buildings, resulting in one reported injury.
The Russian air force is believed to have used 142 drones in these attacks, with air defense managing to shoot down 126 of them. However, Russia has yet to comment on the matter. Simultaneously, Russian forces have claimed territorial gains in eastern Ukraine, but these reports have been questioned by the Ukrainian general staff.
Russia's Ministry of Defense reported intercepting 21 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 11 drones shot down over the Volgograd region, 11 over the regions of Rostov, Belgorod, and Bryansk in southwestern Russia.
In recent weeks, Russia has intensified its attacks on Ukrainian energy and gas infrastructure. Ten locations were hit by the drones, although these figures could not be independently verified. Significant damage was reported in Sumy, Poltava, and Kyiv, with institutions in the affected regions now being operated using generators.
The regions particularly affected by these attacks are Sumy (where a substation was hit), Poltava (with significant damage to the gas transport system), Odessa (losing power to around 30,000 households), as well as hits reported in Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipro, and Zaporizhzhia. These attacks aim to weaken Ukraine's energy system before the heating season.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, there are bigger problems ahead for Russia. A political military blogger has criticized the leadership over attacks on refineries. However, there is no comment from Kyiv regarding the intercepted drones or the power outages and operation of institutions in the affected regions after the attacks.
