Russia pounded Kyiv with missiles in a rare daylight attack on Monday, hours after a night-time barrage when it struck fuel depots and five aircraft at a military site in the west.
A total of 11 ballistic and cruise missiles were fired at Ukraine's capital at about 11.30am, according to the country’s chief of staff, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
All of them were shot down, he said, and puffs of white smoke could be seen in the blue sky over the city from street level.
Debris from the intercepted missiles fell in Kyiv’s central and northern districts during the morning, landing in the middle of traffic on a city road and also starting a fire on a building's roof, the Kyiv military administration said. At least one civilian was reported hurt.
The blasts unnerved some locals, already under strain after being awakened by the night attack.
“After what happened last night, I react sharply to every siren now. I was terrified, and I’m still trembling,” shared Alina Ksenofontova, a 50-year-old woman who took refuge in the Kyiv subway with her dog Bublik.
The central station, Tetatralna, was crowded with sheltering locals.
Artem Zhyla, a 24-year-old who provides legal services abroad, took his laptop with him and kept working underground.
“I heard two or three explosions, went to the bathroom, and then I heard five or seven more explosions. That’s when I realized something terrible was happening,” he said.
Like many others in the capital, he feels exhausted and stressed. However, he has no intentions of giving up and plans to attend his yoga class to recharge.
“This is certainly not enough to break us,” he said.
The overnight attack was aimed at military hardware and infrastructure in the second giant bombardment in as many days.
Valery Zaluzhny, commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, said on social media that up to 40 missiles and about 35 drones had been launched, of which 37 and 29 respectively were shot down.
However, Russia hit a military target in Ukraine's western region of Khmelnytskiy, and rescuers are still fighting to contain fires, the regional governor said early on Monday.
“Russian troops hit several sites, including a military one in the Khmelnytskiy region,” the Ukrainian authorities said on social media. They added that fuel depots and five aircraft had been hit.
The Khmelnytskiy regional governor's office said work was continuing on Monday to contain the fires in storage areas for fuel, lubricants and munitions.
Russia is “trying to exhaust our air defences,” Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv city military administration, said on Telegram.
Ukraine said it also launched air strikes on Russian troops and weapons, including anti-aircraft systems and command posts.
Monday’s overnight attacks followed the largest drone strike since the start of the Russian invasion. It killed two people and wounded three others at the weekend.
“Most of the destruction was averted, and most of the lives that could have been taken by these Shaheds [drones] were saved,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address.
“I am grateful to each and every person who made it possible. Thank you, warriors.”
Russia has intensified aerial strikes on the capital this month, and warned the West against escalating the conflict after the US agreed to approve deliveries of F-16 fighter jets.
