Key facts
- Ukrenergo said a Russian FPV drone struck a vehicle carrying its energy workers in Sumy Oblast on Nov. 9.
- Three workers were hospitalized, one in critical condition, according to Ukrenergo.
- Ukrenergo said Russian forces deliberately targeted workers maintaining and repairing damaged energy infrastructure.
- Outages affected 12 oblasts on Nov. 9, with Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts particularly critical, Ukrenergo said.
- Emergency power outages began on the morning of Nov. 9 in Sumy, Poltava and Kharkiv oblasts, Ukrenergo said.
A Russian FPV drone struck a vehicle carrying Ukrainian energy workers in Sumy Oblast on Nov. 9, injuring three of them, according to Ukraine's state-owned energy operator Ukrenergo. All three were taken to a hospital, and one is in critical condition, Ukrenergo said.
Ukrenergo said Russian forces deliberately targeted workers responsible for maintaining and repairing damaged energy infrastructure. "Today's attack is yet another testament to the price paid for this work," the company said.
The strike came as crews repair infrastructure damaged by repeated Russian strikes. On Nov. 9, outages affected 12 oblasts, with the situation particularly critical in Kyiv and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts, Ukrenergo said. Outages were reported in Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, Kyiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Vinnytsia, Zaporizhzhia and Zhytomyr oblasts, according to the company. Emergency repair work is underway wherever security conditions allow, it added.
A Russian mass strike on Nov. 3 was the largest attack on Ukraine's energy facilities this year, causing widespread power outages and disrupting water supplies across Kyiv for more than 24 hours. Russia has also increasingly targeted power lines as temperatures drop.
Overnight into Nov. 9, power lines were hit in the village of Zolochiv in Kharkiv Oblast and in the city of Kharkiv, according to Oleh Syniehubov. Local authorities in Odesa Oblast reported attacks on the power grid, and an energy infrastructure facility was hit in Rivne Oblast, according to local authorities. Emergency power outages were introduced on the morning of Nov. 9 in Sumy, Poltava and Kharkiv oblasts because of the strain on the grid, and previously announced outage schedules in those regions were suspended, Ukrenergo said.