55 killed as Russian drones hit rescue crews in Komyshuvakha
Authorities reported that emergency workers were struck while responding to a previous bomb attack in the Zaporizhzhia region, leaving roughly 50 people missing.
By Alexei Brooks ·
Ukrainian authorities confirmed that at least 55 people died in the village of Komyshuvakha after Russian forces targeted the site of a previous strike. The attack occurred in the Zaporizhzhia region, near the front line, where residents had been waiting for humanitarian aid.
The sequence began when multiple Russian guided bombs struck a former school and a nearby shelter used by civilians. Emergency crews arrived to assist. On Sunday, a Russian drone hit those rescue workers while they were on mission. No personnel were injured in that second strike, but specialized rescue equipment was damaged, according to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service.
Military intelligence agency HUR stated that about 50 people remained missing as of the latest reports. Many recovered bodies have not been identified, and DNA analysis is currently underway. HUR also said it had identified some Russian service members involved in the aerial bomb attacks, which officials described as a double tap tactic aimed at responders.
On Saturday, police officers and relatives gathered in Zaporizhzhia for a farewell ceremony. Six officers were killed in the strikes, including four who died near the former school. Rain fell as families wept beside the coffins. Andrii Khomenko, a police lieutenant colonel who worked with the victims, said the officers used every skill at their disposal to protect themselves. He noted that when the enemy deliberately gathered civilians in one place and then launched strikes, no skills could have helped.
Yuliia Nykonenko, a senior police lieutenant, said the officers risked their lives to save others, including children. The community also buried three residents near one another in a part of the Zaporizhzhia cemetery where authorities plan to create a memorial.
Yurii Karapetian, a community leader, mourned his wife Natalia, who was killed while distributing bread to those in the shelter. He said she chose to stay in Komyshuvakha to help other residents, many of them elderly and living alone. He urged the international community to act, stating that if Russia is not stopped, they will not stop anywhere.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack on emergency crews absolute cynicism and brutality. In a post on X, he noted that overnight Russian strikes on energy infrastructure in the Dnipropetrovsk region left more than 600,000 people without power. Zelenskyy said Russia launched 115 missiles, 1,900 guided aerial bombs and more than 3,000 drones against Ukraine in the past week. He called on partners to sanction entities involved in missile production and urged the European Union to impose a strong 22nd package of sanctions.
The Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant lost its external power supply on Sunday. A damaged power line was disconnected for safety, and the plant is now running on backup diesel generators. The plant has been offline since early in the war but requires power to keep essential cooling systems running.
