Russia’s overnight drone attack on Odesa Oblast significantly damaged local energy infrastructure, leaving “thousands” of consumers without electricity, the southern military command reported early on Dec. 10.
Immediately, Ukrainian energy company DTEK said that all consumers in the region, except for critical infrastructure, would temporarily be cut off from electricity.
The statement did not indicate when power would be restored.
In a Telegram post, DTEK said that “several” energy facilities in Odesa Oblast were “destroyed simultaneously,” putting enormous pressure on the local energy system.
Emergency blackouts will also occur in urban areas of the region, including the city of Odesa, according to DTEK.
The military command said that there were no casualties so far from the overnight attack and that rescue and restoration efforts are underway.
The Russian military is “continuing its technological terror by targeting energy infrastructure facilities (in Ukraine),” the command said on Facebook.
Of the 15 Iranian-made kamikaze drones fired by Russia overnight in southern Ukraine, Ukraine’s Air Force said it had shot down 10.
The report did not indicate how many of them had hit their targets specifically in Odesa Oblast.
Since Oct. 10, Russia has fired more than 1,000 missiles and drones at Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Volodymyr Kudrytsky, CEO of Ukraine's state grid operator Ukrenergo, recently said.
As the weather in Ukraine drops below freezing point, Kudrytsky added that almost all of the country's thermal power plants had suffered damage from Russian attacks. Moscow has repeatedly named Ukraine's energy infrastructure among its key military targets.
