At least 27 people have been killed after an overnight Russian attack on a warehouse in the Bucha district, outside the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, officials said.
What happened
A huge column of black smoke billowed over Kyiv’s western suburbs, as officials reported a warehouse storing munitions was still on fire on Saturday morning. A Russian drone struck the warehouse near Kyiv’s western suburbs storing munitions, sparking huge explosions, authorities said. Tymur Tkachenko, head of the local regional military administration, said that at least 50 residential buildings had been damaged in the attack, which caused a large-scale fire that spread to homes and a restaurant.
The dead
“Unfortunately, as things stand, 27 people are known to have died. And this figure may not be final,” Kyiv regional governor Tymur Tkachenko said on Saturday. Among the dead was Taras Didych, mayor of the village of Dmytrivska, Tkachenko said.
What Zelenskyy said
In a statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a warehouse had been struck in the village of Myla “followed by a detonation”. He did not give details about the site, but confirmed that criminal proceedings would follow. “There are regulations in place – ammunition cannot be stored near homes or other residential areas,” Zelenskyy said.
The investigation
The warehouse appeared to have been storing “explosive objects”, according to Ukrainian prosecutors, who said they are opening an investigation into criminal negligence. The prosecutor’s office specified that its investigation would focus on “the legality of the storage of explosive objects and materials on the enterprise’s grounds”, as well as whether the company responsible, which was not named, had the “necessary permits and approvals”.
Wider context
Both Russia and Ukraine have intensified long-range strikes on each other in recent months, sparking fires and causing civilian casualties to soar.
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Originally reported by Al Jazeera.
Sad news.