Over 100 drones target civilian areas as Ukraine faces worst power crisis since 2022
Russian forces launched a massive overnight assault involving more than 100 drones and tactical missiles, killing at least six civilians and wounding 45 others across Ukraine. The wave of attacks, which included 60 Shahed long-range UAVs and Iskander-M ballistic missiles, has pushed the national energy grid to its breaking point.
Ukrainian air defense systems successfully intercepted 76 drones, but 19 others struck 12 different locations across the country. In frontline areas, Russia intensified its use of tactical glide bombs to target residential settlements.
Casualties reported across five regions
Donetsk Governor Vadym Filashkin confirmed four deaths and six injuries in the government-controlled areas of the region over the last 24 hours. To the south, in Zaporizhzhia, a series of four strikes—including glide bombs—devastated the village of Komyshuvakha, leaving one person dead and ten wounded.
In Kherson, local military authorities reported one fatality and two injuries following strikes on civilian sectors along the Dnipro River. While Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported five injuries, no fatalities were confirmed in his jurisdiction during this latest 24-hour window.
Missile strikes on urban centers
Dnipro and Kryvyi Rih were targeted on January 22 by Russian drones and an Iskander-M ballistic missile. The strikes in Kryvyi Rih injured 12 people, including four children, while seven others, including a 14-year-old, were wounded in Dnipro.
Further casualties occurred in the Vasylkivka community and Nikopol, where women aged 47 and 67, along with an 18-year-old man, were injured in separate attacks between January 22 and 23.
Energy system on the brink of collapse
The relentless bombardment has triggered a profound energy crisis. Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal described January 22 as the most challenging day for the Ukrainian energy system since the total blackout of November 2022.
On January 23, DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy provider, announced emergency power outages in the Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Similar emergency measures are now in effect across most of the country, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv, as technicians struggle to stabilize the grid.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
