Pavlohrad, Yasnohirka, Odesa region: Russian strikes on 26 October, children among injured

Pavlohrad

On Monday, 26 October, a Russian drone struck Pavlohrad in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Regional military administration head Oleksandr Hanzha first reported one person killed and at least three injured, all hospitalised, including two 10-year-old girls. The State Emergency Service later updated the figures: one person killed and seven injured, including two children, Ukrinform reported.

The strike set a car on fire and damaged several apartment buildings and a shop. Overnight, according to Hanzha, Russian forces attacked the Nikopol district with drones more than 10 times.

Kramatorsk community

The same day Russian forces struck the village of Yasnohirka in the Kramatorsk community, Donetsk region, four times. City military administration head Oleksandr Honcharenko reported at least one person killed and 10 injured, including a 13-year-old girl. The exact number of casualties and the extent of the damage were still being assessed.

On 23 October Russia dropped three FAB-250 bombs on Kramatorsk, killing one person and injuring six, including three children.

Odesa region: double strike on rescuers

Overnight in the Odesa region Russia attacked an industrial facility and a garage cooperative. According to the State Emergency Service, while firefighters were battling the blaze at the facility, Russia carried out two more strikes directly on the site where they were working. The rescuers took shelter and were unharmed, but firefighting equipment was damaged. Elsewhere four garages were damaged and a car destroyed. Preliminarily there were no deaths or injuries; more than 50 emergency workers were at the sites.

Nova Vodolaha: 12-year-old Artem dies

Also on 26 October, 12-year-old Artem Koval died in a Kyiv hospital. He had been wounded in the 19 October strike on Yuvileinyi park in Nova Vodolaha, Kharkiv region, local head Oleksandr Yesin said, as reported by Suspilne. Doctors fought for his life for more than a week. His 8-year-old sister Aryna was killed at the scene. According to the regional prosecutor’s office, that strike killed five people, including two children, and injured 15.

Why it matters

One day shows a typical picture: drone strikes on residential areas of cities deep in the region, shelling of frontline communities, and follow-up strikes on rescuers who arrive to fight fires. Children among the injured and killed are not an exception but a consequence of residential areas, parks and shops becoming targets.