Killed while running to shelter and helping the injured: Kyiv residents describe aftermath of Russian attack
Russia attacked Ukraine again on the night of 31 July-1 August. Dozens of people were injured across five districts of the capital. Seven Kyiv residents were killed in the Darnytskyi district, which Russian forces struck with ballistic missiles.
Source: Suspilne. Kyiv, a local branch of Ukraine's national public broadcaster
Details: In the Darnytskyi district, two ballistic missiles struck close to residential buildings. Thirteen apartment blocks were damaged, and a crater formed in one of the courtyards where a missile fell.
After the air-raid warning was issued, local residents ran towards a concrete structure they were using as a shelter. At that moment, one of the missiles struck nearby, killing five people.
When other Kyiv residents began helping the injured, another missile hit close by and killed two more.
A resident of one of the damaged apartment blocks said his neighbour had been killed in the attack, suffering fatal injuries to his legs.
"The first explosion happened when everyone was asleep. The second was when the poor people started running. Some of them are now suffering from concussion.
There's a more or less concrete lower section down there; there used to be a factory. And there were people there. Those running there got cut up by shrapnel. All the three-room flats [in the building] were damaged. Some people couldn't get out of there," said Kyiv resident Oleh.
Patrol officer Yehor Terekhin, who was helping the injured at the site of the strike on the night of the attack, was killed. The 22-year-old Kyiv resident is survived by his mother and nine-year-old brother.
"Yehor began his service with the Kyiv patrol police in 2025. He was faithful to his oath, carried out his duties conscientiously, remained a reliable partner and was someone who always came to the aid of those who needed it.
That is how he remained until the very last moment of his life. Saving others, he gave up the most precious thing he had – his own life," the patrol police said.
Another married couple from Kyiv survived by hiding in the bathroom. The husband and wife live on the second floor of one of the five-storey buildings, where the Russians partially destroyed the stairwell on the first two floors.
"The bathroom saved us. The tiles started falling, but the boiler survived. I don't know how it didn't fall on our heads, how we came out alive.
My husband only stepped on some glass, just a little. Otherwise, God saved us – I can't put it any other way," said Kyiv resident Lesia.
The Solomianskyi district also came under attack, where two apartment blocks were damaged, local media channel Kyiv24 reported. Flats were burnt out inside the buildings, the blast blew out most of the windows, destroyed the flooring between storeys and damaged balconies and facades.
"We heard the first few explosions and started running out [of the flat], but then we saw more ballistic missiles coming, so we decided not to risk it and stayed put. At that moment we heard an impact – the lights went out. Then there was a second impact and a powerful blast wave.
We opened our eyes and all our windows and doors were blown out. Basically, only the walls were left standing," a Kyiv resident said.
Background:
- Russia carried out a combined attack on Ukrainian cities on the night of 31 July-1 August. The capital, along with Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava oblasts, came under attack.
- Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia deployed 35 missiles of various types, Zircon anti-ship missiles, and 185 drones.
- At least, nine people were killed and more than 30 injured in a Russian ballistic missile attack on Kyiv. Fires and destruction were recorded in five districts of the capital. An industrial facility caught fire in Kyiv Oblast.
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