Russia launched 310 drones at Ukraine overnight, cutting power in several cities, a day after a mass strike on Ukraine’s energy system.
Ukraine’s Air Force said the latest attack began at 6 p.m. on November 3 and that air defenses had downed or neutralized 272 drones by 8 a.m., including 64 jet-powered Shahed-type drones. It recorded hits at 19 locations.
Kovel Mayor Ihor Chaika said a strike on an infrastructure facility left most of the city without electricity, and an attack on energy infrastructure caused a power outage in Zhytomyr, local officials said. Drones also struck an energy facility in Ternopil, the Kyiv Post reported.
The night before, Russia launched 289 attack drones, 17 ballistic missiles, and 59 cruise missiles, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He said the main targets were power generation facilities and substations in nine regions: Odesa, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernivtsi, Chernihiv, and Rivne. “Emergency and rolling blackouts continue in many cities and communities,” Zelensky said.
DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, said three of its thermal power plants suffered significant damage and stopped generating. Vitalii Zaichenko, CEO of grid operator Ukrenergo, told the Kyiv Independent the attack included one of the largest waves of ballistic missiles aimed at critical infrastructure this year.
In Kyiv, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said damage to the regional power hub forced emergency power cuts in the capital and surrounding region and disrupted water supply and electric public transport.
In Kharkiv, Zelensky said Russian forces directly struck a city clinical hospital, injuring 73 people, a figure also given by the regional prosecutor’s office. Mayor Ihor Terekhov said more than 1,000 windows were shattered and about 200 patients would be moved to other facilities. In Dnipro, a morning missile strike killed two people and injured 20, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Oleksandr Hanzha said, and damaged a hospital and a medical center.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it struck electricity facilities in the Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions that it said supply the Ukrainian army and military factories. The claims could not be independently verified.
Zelensky warned on November 2 that Ukrainian intelligence showed Russia preparing a new mass strike “primarily targeting energy and logistics,” citing Ukraine’s difficulties with air defense and Patriot missiles. Washington this week approved a potential $2.1 billion sale of 500 Patriot interceptors to Ukraine, while Kyiv said Russian troop losses hit a record in October.
Ukraine, Russia, and the US are due to hold talks in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11, US envoy Steve Witkoff said.