Russian strikes kill four, cut power to hundreds of thousands in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region
CHERNIHIV: Russian attacks killed four people and plunged hundreds of thousands into darkness in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region on Tuesday (Oct 21), in Moscow’s latest assault on energy infrastructure ahead of winter.
The energy ministry said the regional capital, also called Chernihiv, and the northern part of the province had lost all electricity supply after strikes on power facilities. By the afternoon, power was gradually being restored to parts of the city, according to Reuters reporters on the ground.
A separate daytime strike involving about 20 Russian kamikaze drones hit the nearby town of Novhorod-Siverskyi, killing four civilians and wounding at least seven others, local officials said. The town, about 32km from the Russian border, suffered significant damage, though the intended targets were not specified.
CIVILIANS LEFT WITHOUT POWER OR WATER
In Chernihiv, residents queued to collect water from street cisterns and sought refuge in so-called “invincibility points” — tents equipped with stoves and generators to provide temporary heat and light.
“It’s hard,” said Nina Dymyrets, a 45-year-old nursery assistant sheltering with her two grandsons. “One child didn’t go to nursery because there was no power, another didn’t go to school because there were no lessons either.”
The region, which borders Russia and had a pre-war population of just under a million, has been repeatedly struck by drone and missile attacks in recent weeks. Frequent blackouts have disrupted daily life and left many residents struggling to stay warm as temperatures drop.
The neighbouring Sumy region was also hit, with local authorities reporting nine people injured in the attacks.
ONGOING DRONE THREAT HAMPERS REPAIRS
The energy ministry said emergency repair crews were initially unable to reach damaged facilities because Russian drones were still circling overhead. It accused Moscow of “deliberately prolonging the humanitarian crisis” by targeting repair sites.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said repairs were under way. “Russia’s tactics are to murder people and terrorise them with the cold,” he wrote on Telegram.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “pretending to be ready for diplomacy and peace negotiations, while in reality launching a brutal missile and drone attack”.
Russia has consistently targeted Ukraine’s energy grid since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022, claiming such strikes are legitimate military actions.
CHERNIHIV VOWS TO ENDURE
Chernihiv’s acting mayor, Oleksandr Lomako, accused Moscow of trying to deprive civilians of power and heat before winter.
“We overcame in February–April 2022. We will overcome now,” he said on Telegram, recalling the city’s successful defence during the early months of the invasion.
A former government official told Reuters that Chernihiv’s proximity to Russia and its poorly protected power infrastructure made it a vulnerable target.
Moscow has sharply increased air attacks across Ukraine in recent weeks, repeating strike patterns from previous winters that left cities far from the front lines in darkness for days.
“They just hit and destroy everything. There’s no end to this,” said Nataliia, a 43-year-old mother watching her daughter on a playground swing amid the citywide blackout.
