Russia Hits Odesa High-Rises, Kharkiv Fuel Stations in Mass Drone Attack
Russia launched 210 drones overnight, striking Odesa residential towers and Kharkiv gas stations, injuring civilians and damaging port and urban infrastructure across multiple regions.
Kyiv Post
75
5 min čtení
0 zobrazení
[UPDATED: May 1, 10:10 am
, Kyiv time. The report has been updated with revised casualty figures in Odesa, additional details on the attack in Kharkiv, and the latest report from the Air Force.
Updated with President Zelensky’s reaction to the strikes,]
Russian troops attacked Odesa with drones early on Friday morning, May 1, striking high-rise residential buildings and causing fires.
“The enemy attacked our city again. As a result of the attack, a fire broke out in a 16-story building. We also recorded a hit on another high-rise, where fires erupted on the 11th and 12th floors,” the head of the Odesa City Military Administration (MVA), Serhiy Lysak, wrote on Telegram.
Lysak added that all emergency services are currently working at the scene.
He later clarified that the strikes hit residential high-rises in the Khadzhibeyskyi district. According to his initial report, one person was injured, but the head of the regional military administration (OVA), Oleh Kiper, later reported two victims.
“In Odesa, two multi-story residential buildings were damaged by strike drones. Apartments were destroyed at the impact sites, and fires broke out. Two people were injured and are receiving all necessary assistance. Damage to port infrastructure in the region was also recorded,” Kiper wrote on Telegram.
In addition to Odesa, Russian drones targeted Izium. The Izmail District State Administration reported that Russia attacked port infrastructure in the Izmail district, adding that rescuers quickly extinguished the fires.
On the morning of May 1, Russian forces also attacked five districts of Kharkiv with drones, hitting gas stations and causing casualties.
Belgium joins recent signatories including Germany, the UK, Moldova and Czechia, strengthening efforts to hold Russia accountable
The first strike hit the Kholodnohirskyi district.
Later, several drones struck a gas station in the Kyivskyi district, damaging multiple vehicles and the station building. Information on casualties there is still being clarified.
Another strike was recorded in the Saltivskyi district, where a 36-year-old man was injured, reportedly suffering shrapnel wounds. He was hospitalized and is receiving medical care.
The Nemyshlianskyi district also came under attack.
In the Slobidskyi district, another gas station was hit. A 55-year-old man suffered an acute stress reaction and was treated on site.
According to the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, Russian forces struck three gas stations in the city, with a fourth incident still being verified. Another gas station was also hit in the wider region.
Prosecutors said Russia may have used drones equipped with V2U artificial intelligence (AI).
According to the Air Force, from 5:45 p.m. on April 30, Russia launched 210 drones, including Shahed attack drones (some jet-powered), as well as Gerbera, Italmas, and other types. About 140 of them were Shahed-type drones.
Ukraine’s air defenses – including aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare, unmanned systems, and mobile fire groups – repelled the attack.
As of 8 a.m., preliminary data shows that 190 Russian drones were shot down or suppressed across the north, south, and east of the country. A total of 20 drones struck targets at 14 locations, while debris from downed drones was recorded at 10 locations.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has responded to Russia’s overnight attack, writing on Telegram:
“The Russians again targeted ordinary high-rise buildings in Odesa – as of now, five people are injured and two buildings are on fire.”
According to the president, one person was also injured in a drone strike on his hometown of Kryvyi Rih.
“In the Kharkiv region, railway infrastructure was attacked, including traction substations. There was damage, railcars caught fire, and thousands of families were left without electricity due to the shelling. Strikes also hit the Sumy and Zaporizhzhia regions,” Zelensky added.
He stressed that Russia continues to target Ukraine’s energy sector, critical infrastructure, and civilian facilities.
“There were 210 strike drones overnight, about 140 of them ‘Shaheds.’ These daily attacks show that more pressure must be placed on Russia. We need to weaken the aggressor so that Europe has greater security,” he said.
Zelensky added that sanctions policy must continue and be synchronized with Ukraine’s partners.
“Our long-range sanctions bring the Russians back to reality. This is absolutely fair and, most importantly, limits Russia’s ability to drag out this war,” the president wrote.
“If Russia does not switch to diplomacy voluntarily, it must be forced to do so. I am grateful to everyone who helps us achieve this,” he added.
Lysak said the attack targeted residential areas and civilian facilities in several parts of the southern port city, with the Prymorskyi District suffering the worst damage.
A high-rise building and a five-story residential building were damaged in Prymorskyi District, while private houses and apartment buildings in central Odesa were also hit.
“Social and commercial facilities were hit,” Lysak said, adding that a kindergarten was heavily damaged, while a shopping center, a hotel and administrative buildings were also struck.
Strikes were also recorded on infrastructure facilities, warehouses and a garage cooperative in the city’s Khadzhybeiskyi District.
Odesa Governor later said the number of injured had risen from 16 to 20.
Odesa was also targeted in another Russian strike earlier this week, which injured 14 people and caused damage in three districts of the city.
