At least 37 people were killed after a Russian drone strike hit a military ammunition depot near Kyiv late Friday, triggering massive detonations and fires. The attack, which took place in the Bucha district in the village of Myla, is one of the deadliest strikes in Ukraine this year, according to officials.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed the death toll on Saturday and vowed to punish those responsible for storing explosives near residential areas. The strike hit a military facility containing drones, mines, and artillery shells, Zelenskiy said in a video address. The resulting blast caused significant damage to nearby infrastructure, including a facility for the elderly and people with disabilities and at least 50 residential buildings, according to Kyiv region governor Tymur Tkachenko.
Criminal Negligence Investigation
The office of Ukraine’s prosecutor general has opened an investigation into criminal negligence. Prosecutors stated that the unmanned aerial vehicle struck the grounds of an enterprise in Myla at approximately 8:10 pm on August 28, sparking a large-scale fire and subsequent detonations. The investigation will focus on whether the owner of the site had the necessary permits and approvals and the overall legality of storing explosive materials on those grounds.
President Zelenskiy characterized the situation as terrible negligence on the part of those who stored explosives right next to people
, noting that regulations strictly forbid storing ammunition near homes. Prime Minister Sergiy Koretsky added that making such mistakes in the fifth year of the full-scale invasion is criminal negligence
, stating that a similar “lesson” had not been learned following a previous strike on a munitions depot near Kyiv in July.
Pattern of Depot Strikes
This incident marks the second time in less than two months that a drone strike on an arms depot near the capital has caused secondary explosions. Last month, a strike in the town of Vyshneve killed 10 people and damaged hundreds of houses.
In response to these events, Ukraine’s Defence Ministry issued a statement on Saturday ordering all those responsible for weapons storage to complete a full audit of their locations.
Broader Aerial Campaign
The attack on the Myla depot occurred during a period of intensified Russian air operations. The Ukrainian air force reported that Russia launched 267 drones and at least two missiles between late Friday and early Saturday. Zelenskiy stated that Kyiv has been under virtually non-stop attack
from jet-powered drones, which Ukraine currently lacks the air defenses to shoot down.
The violence extended beyond the Bucha district.
- Two people killed and 27 wounded in the southern Kherson region, according to regional head Oleksandr Prokudin.
Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed the strike in Myla targeted a warehouse storing launch boosters and components for long-range drones. The ministry also claimed to have targeted a logistics center and warehouses for Flamingo cruise missile parts in the Kyiv region, as well as ports in Izmail and Mykolaiv.
Evacuations and Impact
The scale of the detonation in the Bucha district forced more than 370 people to evacuate the area. Among the dead was Taras Didych, the head of the Dmytrivka community, who Governor Tkachenko said was among the first to arrive at the scene to assist in rescue operations. Rescue services and firefighters battled the resulting blazes overnight, with plumes of black smoke visible over the western suburbs of the capital.
