An overnight attack using ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles struck gas production facilities in Ukraine's Poltava and Kharkiv regions, killing five people and disrupting supplies to thousands, Ukrainian energy and security officials reported.
Ukraine's state energy company Naftogaz said the incidents hit facilities in both regions and resulted in major damage and losses of production. Company CEO Serhiy Koretskyi reported that three Naftogaz employees were killed and 37 additional people were wounded in the strikes. He described the operation as a combined strike made up of drones and ballistic missiles.
Regional authorities in Poltava reported direct hits and debris falling at two sites in the central Poltava district. Governor Vitalii Diakivnych said the damage to infrastructure cut gas service to almost 3,500 customers in the area.
Ukraine's air force provided an account of the wider attack pattern, saying that from 18:00 (1500 GMT) the previous evening forces launched 11 ballistic missiles and 164 drones at targets across the country. Air defenses intercepted or neutralised one missile and 149 drones, the service said, while eight missiles and 14 drones impacted 14 different locations.
Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko provided further casualty detail, saying two State Emergency Service rescuers were killed in a follow-up missile strike that hit after emergency crews had arrived to fight a large blaze caused by an earlier strike at a gas production site. He said 23 rescue personnel were injured in that sequence of events.
Officials emphasised the toll to both personnel and infrastructure. Naftogaz leadership noted significant damage to production assets and associated losses in output, while regional authorities documented the interruption to local gas deliveries affecting thousands of customers.
The sequence described by officials points to a multi-vector attack that combined long-range ballistic munitions with large numbers of unmanned aerial vehicles, and to subsequent hazards faced by emergency responders working at targeted facilities.
Summary
An overnight Russian missile and drone attack struck gas production facilities in Poltava and Kharkiv regions, killing five people including two rescuers, wounding dozens, and cutting gas to nearly 3,500 customers. Ukrainian officials reported the assault involved 11 ballistic missiles and 164 drones, with air defenses intercepting many but several strikes hitting multiple locations. Authorities described substantial damage and production losses at the affected facilities.