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Russian attack on Ukrainian ammunition warehouse triggers waves of blasts, killing 37
By Svitlana Vlasova

At least 37 people have been killed and dozens wounded after a Russian drone attack on an ammunitions warehouse triggered a large fire and multiple explosions that lasted for hours in a residential area near Kyiv.

The attack in the Bucha district came amid near constant aerial assaults from Russia. But it was likely the ammunition in the warehouse being hit that had catastrophic consequences.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to punish those responsible for allowing explosive materials to be stored this close to people’s homes.

Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv region military administration, said the that as of Saturday afternoon, 37 people were known to to have died and the toll could rise further. This makes the incident one of the deadliest Kyiv has seen since the start of the war more than four years ago.

“This is a terrible and irreparable loss. Our heartfelt condolences go out to the families and loved ones of those who have died,” Tkachenko said.


Videos and photos shared by local residents show several completely destroyed buildings, with a little more than a few bare walls and scorched earth left.

Speaking about the attack, Zelensky said the strike hit an ammunition storage facility, which he said “should not have been there.”

He said the strike caused shells, mines, other munitions and drones stored at the facility to explode.

“It is a horrific situation, and there has been appalling negligence by those who stored explosive materials right next to where people were living,” the Ukrainian president said, adding that a criminal investigation into the incident was underway.

Separately, the office of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General said in a statement that “explosive objects and materials” were stored in the premises and that an investigation would be opened into “the circumstances surrounding the explosion on the premises of the facility and the actions of the officials responsible.”

The incident is particularly worrying as it comes just weeks after seven people died when a Russian strike hit a warehouse storing large quantities of ammunition in a residential area in Vyshneve near Kyiv, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the site of the incident on Saturday.


Myla, Ukraine
Zelensky said a care home for elderly citizens and people living with disabilities was among the dozens of building damaged in the latest attack, and that more than 300 emergency services personnel were responding at the scene.

Ukrainian authorities said Taras Didych, the long-time head of the local municipality was among those killed when he arrived at the scene to help.

“He always stood by his people. He did not abandon them even during the Russian occupation — he was there, offering support and assistance, and keeping the community together during one of the most terrifying periods,” Mykola Kalashnyk, Ukrane’s Minister for Recovery, Infrastructure and Transport, said in a statement.

Days of non-stop terror
The deadly blast came as Kyiv has endured more than two days of near non-stop Russian attacks.

According to a CNN tally, there have been 28 air raid alerts between midnight on Thursday and midday on Saturday, lasting more than 28 hours in total.

A two-year old girl who was seriously wounded in one of the many attacks on Saturday died of her injuries, Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Five others were injured across the city.

There were also strikes on other regions overnight into Saturday, with attacks reported Odesa, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kherson, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Donetsk, and Chernihiv regions. More than 260 attack drones were involved, as well as Banderol drones, Zelensky said.

While some missile strikes were recorded on Thursday, most of the attacks over the past few days were by jet-powered drones. These are a relatively new addition to Russia’s arsenal, having been first spotted around the start of the year. They can be exceptionally dangerous.


Jet-powered drones fly at speeds of up to 500 kilometers per hour (310 miles per hour), evading Ukraine’s air defenses. They are also too fast for Kyiv’s mobile fire groups, so the only way to shoot them down is with ground-to-air missiles or fighter jets – both of which are in extremely limited supply in Ukraine.

“The Russians have significantly stepped up their use of jet-powered UAVs and their numbers will continue to rise, because the Russians recognize their effectiveness,” Pavlo Palisa, the deputy head of Zelensky’s Presidential Office, told reporters on Saturday, adding that Ukraine needs to adapt its defenses.

“This will take time. The interceptor drones we currently have, which in theory could intercept jet-powered drones, have not yet demonstrated the expected effectiveness …. we are looking for ways to resolve it.”

boxypane:
Putin. Must lives be wasted just to show power/strength? And it scares them when they come close to death.

ResidentSnitch:
You can tell that these people know than most of us about after life. Do you really think that anyone who believes in repercussions after this life would intentionally be killing other people like fowls?
Something must be ongoing discretely.

shoodboi2:
Ukraine had an ammo dump right in the middle of a city. That is a war crime. Militaries are not allowed to store bombs and weapons where civilians live.

For clarity, this has been happening for a few months now, and Ukraine keeps saying it was an error and are going to investigate. But at this point, it is clearly not an error but a deliberate attempt by the Zelensky-led Ukraine government to use innocent Ukrainian civilians as human shield.

Mj4199:
This is just it! You nailed it here sir ... If not that it was exposed this way, the next thing you will hear is genocide genocide

uunwanaobong3:
FROM FORMER AMERICA INTELLIGENT CHIEF, TRUMP IS PLANNING OF USING NUKES IN IRAN AND RUSSIA.


I JUST DEY PITY PEOPLE LEAVING IN USA...... A MAD MAN IS RUNNING SHOW FOR THEM.


I AM EAGERLY WAITING FOR THE NUKES TO BE USED

A COUNTRY THAT EXISTED FOR 250 YEARS HAS FOUGHT WARS WITH ITSELF AND AROUND THE WORLD FOR 247 YEARS

CaseSensitive:
President Putin already said about two weeks ago that Zelensky's regime has opened a pandora box by targeting civilian businesses. Russia is systematically destroying the core engine of Ukraine's economy - steel plants, black sea blockade etc. They can't make anything, can't import, can't export either. Ukraine currently rely on the European Union for survival but EU itself is broke. Ukraine will be a zombie nation in the end without a functioning government.

No air defence system, the little air defence system Zelensky received couple of days ago has already went up in flames - courtesy of Russia's missiles. Currently, any target in Ukraine is fair game for Russia's ballistic missile. It's going to be one looong and tough winter for Ukraine.

That's why a whole CIA director was in Moscow the other day to propose options to President Putin, he knew the next couple of weeks and months are going to be harsh on Ukraine but Putin isn't falling for the trickery because he's being tricked not once or twice before.

boxypane:
Putin. Must lives be wasted just to show power/strength? And it scares them when they come close to death.

motionarena:
2 brothers fighting
So sad

2 nations that look and sound similar how did they let it get to this.

motionarena:
2 brothers fighting
So sad

2 nations that look and sound similar how did they let it get to this.

stonemasonn:
It's normal in war, you try to destroy your opponent's war capabilities. Ukraine will still keep sending drones to Russia, nothing changes. The only fear is Russia's plan to mobilise 500 thousand men to the war front this fall and Russia's plan to attack NATO countries.

Sleekfingers:
I thought some Nigerians were saying that, Ukraine is winning the war....

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

motionarena:
2 brothers fighting
So sad

2 nations that look and sound similar how did they let it get to this.

motionarena:
2 brothers fighting
So sad

2 nations that look and sound similar how did they let it get to this.

uunwanaobong3:
FROM FORMER AMERICA INTELLIGENT CHIEF, TRUMP IS PLANNING OF USING NUKES IN IRAN AND RUSSIA.


I JUST DEY PITY PEOPLE LEAVING IN USA...... A MAD MAN IS RUNNING SHOW FOR THEM.


I AM EAGERLY WAITING FOR THE NUKES TO BE USED

A COUNTRY THAT EXISTED FOR 250 YEARS HAS FOUGHT WARS WITH ITSELF AND AROUND THE WORLD FOR 247 YEARS

DuttyChuks:
Putin was taking it softly softly with Ukraine before but since Ukraine started fighting back and coming deep into Russia, Putin no send them again. North Korean missiles and weapons will be tested in war front in Ukraine and North Korean soldiers will witness how to fight modern wars which they have not had the experience for decades.. Odessa in Ukraine is almost gone.