In Kyiv, rescue and search operations lasting over 39 hours have been completed at a destroyed nine-story building that was damaged as a result of a Russian shelling on June 17
This tragedy again highlights the scale of destruction and human losses that the Ukrainian capital has endured since the beginning of the war. According to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, the search and rescue operation lasted more than a day, and its completion marked the final stage of extensive efforts to find survivors and recover the bodies of those victims buried under the debris. "This complex and exhausting operation in the Solomyanskyi district of Kyiv lasted over 39 hours. Today, at 19:20, the rescuers completed the active phase of the search. However, work on clearing the debris is still ongoing," said the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Unfortunately, the bodies of 23 victims have been recovered from beneath the rubble so far. In total, as a result of the Russian strike on Kyiv on June 17, 28 people were killed, and over 140 were injured to varying degrees. This serves as an additional reminder of the toll that the Ukrainian population is paying in this war, and of the extent of the destruction faced by the capital. More than 400 rescuers from the State Emergency Service and over 200 units of equipment were involved in mitigating the aftermath of the disaster. Modern specialized emergency rescue and engineering equipment, as well as drones and search dogs, were used to locate people trapped under the debris. During the operation, two individuals were rescued from the rubble, while around 50 others were additionally evacuated from apartments and entrances of residential buildings. Overall, the rescuers coordinated all efforts toward saving and searching for the victims, which resulted in the highest number of human losses at this location. This vividly underscores the extent of destruction caused by the missile strike on Kyiv. More details about the circumstances of the incident and its consequences were reported early on June 17. The background of this tragic incident is the night of Tuesday, when Russian forces carried out another massive combined strike on Ukrainian targets. Preliminary information indicates that at least 14 people died in Kyiv, and over a hundred were wounded during this attack. Reports of the emergency situation emerged early in the day, when it became known that a Russian missile hit a nine-story residential building in the city center, damaging an entire entrance. This tragedy once again demonstrated the high level of threat to the city and the resilience of the Ukrainian people in fighting Russian aggression. Local authorities and rescue services continue working on restoring safety, and the overall losses and destruction once more show the price Ukrainians, especially Kyiv residents, are paying for their independence and freedom.