Russian attacks kill one in Ukrainian capital Kyiv, trigger fires

Aug 5 (Reuters) – Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv from the air early on Wednesday, killing one person, injuring 24 and severely damaging buildings in several districts of the city of 3 million people.

The city’s military administration said seven sites had come under attack in the assault that began after midnight. Air raid alerts for Kyiv remained in place for more than an hour. 

Mayor Vitali Klitschko, writing on Telegram, said one warehouse building had been destroyed near the city centre and rescue teams had pulled two people from the ruins.

“There may still be people under the rubble,” he wrote. “Search and rescue operations are proceeding.”

 He said an ambulance driver was among the 24 injured, with four of them remaining in a critical condition.

Klitschko said the attack triggered fires in warehouses and storage areas, but initial reports that a 20-storey apartment building was ablaze proved to be inaccurate.

A large fire broke out on the city’s outskirts, he said, and debris from a fallen missile had landed next to a residential building.

The city’s military administration also said the attack triggered an ammonia leak, which was being tackled by emergency crews.

Reuters witnesses said explosions had been heard throughout the city. Klitschko said air defence units had gone into action to repel the assault.

In the surrounding Kyiv region, another person was killed and 21 other people injured, local authorities said on Telegram. 

Russia has intensified its attacks on Kyiv in recent weeks, with several assaults on the capital in the past month.

Reuters could not independently verify all the reports. Russia and Ukraine deny targeting civilians in the war triggered by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

(Reporting by Ron Popeski, Oleksandr Kozhukhar and Jekaterīna Golubkova; Editing by Edmund Klamann, Sanjeev Miglani and Kate Mayberry)