A Russian Shahed-type drone struck a school in Kyiv on Thursday, October 1, damaging the building and starting a fire while students and teachers sheltered from the attack. No injuries were reported.
Students and Teachers Escape Injury in Shelter
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said pupils and teachers had moved into the school’s shelter after an air raid alert was issued and were protected when the drone hit.
Emergency personnel and other services were deployed to the scene following the strike. Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klitschko separately confirmed that the affected school was in the capital’s Solomianskyi district.
Despite the damage to the educational facility, authorities reported no casualties among the children or staff.
Fire and Structural Damage Reported at School
According to Zelenskyy, the impact triggered a fire on the third floor of the school. Part of a wall was destroyed, while windows and doors across the affected section of the building were damaged.
Images from the scene showed substantial damage to the school’s exterior, including broken windows and a large opening in the brick frontage. The Associated Press reported that the drone’s warhead did not detonate.
Local authorities said the unexploded warhead was subsequently dealt with by specialists. Ukrainian media reported that 104 children and 60 members of staff were inside the school at the time of the attack.
Zelenskyy Condemns Attack on Educational Facility
Zelenskyy strongly condemned the strike, accusing Russia of continuing attacks that endanger Ukrainian civilians, including children and educational institutions.
The Ukrainian president said Moscow should be held accountable for such attacks and argued that Russian strikes should be met with consequences. His comments came as Kyiv continues to call for stronger international measures against Russia.
Ukraine Seeks More International Pressure and Support
Zelenskyy used his response to renew Ukraine’s appeal to its international partners for increased pressure on Moscow as well as additional packages of assistance for Kyiv.
He said Ukrainian officials were working to secure further agreements with partner countries and thanked governments and individuals continuing to provide assistance to Ukraine.
The president did not provide details in the statement about the specific support packages currently under negotiation.
Kyiv Faces Continuing Russian Drone Attacks
The school strike came amid another period of intensified Russian aerial attacks on the Ukrainian capital and other parts of the country.
Reuters reported that Russian drones also targeted other locations in Kyiv during the latest attacks, while Ukrainian authorities continued responding to strikes elsewhere in the country.
The attack on the school has again highlighted the importance of air-raid shelters in Ukrainian educational facilities, with the decision to move students and teachers underground preventing casualties despite the direct damage to the building.
