Russia Hits Ukraine's Energy Grid with 300+ Drones

On the night of October 16, Russia launched a powerful strike on Ukraine, using more than 300 unmanned aerial vehicles and 37 missiles. This was announced by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The attack targeted energy facilities, resulting in emergency and unscheduled power outages in a number of regions across the country.

According to Zelenskyy, infrastructure in the Vinnytsia, Sumy, and Poltava regions came under attack. In the Chernihiv region, a strike was carried out on the city of Nizhyn, where one person was wounded. In the Kharkiv region, critical infrastructure and a unit of the State Emergency Service were targeted, and there are wounded.

According to "Ukrenergo," due to the difficult situation in the power system, emergency shutdowns are being applied in parts of Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia, Kirovohrad, Dnipropetrovsk, Khmelnytskyi, and Cherkasy regions. The "DTEK" company confirmed the use of emergency shutdowns in the Dnipropetrovsk and Kyiv regions, as well as in the capital. A number of regional energy companies, in particular "Poltavaoblenergo" and "Sumyoblenergo," confirmed the application of shutdown schedules, noting that their duration cannot be predicted as the situation is an emergency. Hourly shutdowns have been introduced in the Chernihiv region.

Specific facilities suffered more significant damage as a result of the attack. In the Poltava region, the gas production facilities of "DTEK Naftogaz" were attacked, and their operations had to be suspended. The Russian army also struck the city of Nizhyn and the regional center in the Chernihiv region.