Reports from Ukrainian government or international news agencies on the severity of power outages

Russia Fires 91 Missiles at Ukraine's Energy Grid, Leaving Over 1 Million Without Power

Nov 28, 2024, 08:19 AM

On November 28, 2024, Russia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, causing widespread power outages as temperatures dropped below freezing. In one of the largest assaults of the conflict, Russian forces fired 91 missiles and 97 drones at cities nationwide, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv, Odesa, Rivne, Lutsk, and others. Ukrainian officials reported that at least 1.5 million people were left without electricity, with 515,000 households affected in the Lviv region alone. The attacks utilized various types of missiles, including Kh-101, Kalibr, and Kh-59/69, as well as Iranian-made Shahed drones, some equipped with cluster munitions. Ukraine's Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko stated, "Our energy industry is under a massive attack from the enemy." The transmission system operator Ukrenergo implemented emergency power cuts across all regions. Ukrainian air defenses managed to intercept 76 cruise missiles and 35 drones. President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of using cluster munitions against civilian infrastructure, calling it a "despicable escalation" of tactics. Residents in Kyiv sheltered in metro stations during the attacks. The strikes mark the second large-scale barrage this month, raising concerns about the humanitarian impact on Ukrainian civilians as winter deepens.