Kyiv endures one of largest air assaults: high-rise leveled, four dead, strikes across 25 locations

Russia struck Kyiv throughout the night and into the morning of May 14.

Rescuers recorded damage at 25 locations across six districts of the capital: Dniprovskyi, Solomianskyi, Holosiivskyi, Obolonskyi, Darnytskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts, according to State Emergency Service spokesman Pavlo Petrov.

Tragedy in the Darnytskyi district

Currently, the most extensive operations are underway in the Darnytskyi district, where a section of a residential building collapsed.

People who were trapped in surviving apartments were evacuated using aerial lifts from two sides of the building.

The stairwell itself collapsed along with the adjacent apartments.

Death toll may rise: people still remain under the rubble

At this location, the deaths of four people have been confirmed, and 28 residents were successfully rescued.

There is information regarding more than 10 missing persons — rescuers are searching. Six canine teams have been deployed for the search.

The SES spokesman noted that the death toll may rise, as people still remain under the rubble.

In total across Kyiv, the injury toll has reached 40, including a one-month-old infant who suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Over 150 rescuers, heavy engineering equipment, canine units, and psychologists are working at the collapse site. Mobile service centers have also been deployed for the rapid restoration of lost documents. There are currently no exact deadlines for the completion of the search and rescue operation, as the work is complicated by the state of the structures.

«Rescuers are removing both small and large parts of the structure layer by layer. We have a special device that monitors the building and other structures to ensure the safety of the rescuers,» said SES spokesman Petrov.

A miracle amidst chaos: the rescue of chinchillas

Despite the massive destruction, a true miracle occurred in this tragic situation. The blast wave seriously damaged a local veterinary clinic located near the epicenter.

The greatest concern was the fate of the small patients — a group of chinchillas that were undergoing inpatient treatment. As reported by the facility’s staff, despite the broken walls and shattered glass, all the animals remained alive. Rescuers and clinic personnel promptly evacuated the rodents to a safe location.

«Everything was burning, people were screaming»: eyewitness testimony

Serhiy Fedorovych, an injured resident of the destroyed high-rise, spoke about the first seconds after the Russian attack. The shockwave threw him across the apartment, and the neighboring entrance literally «pancaked» from the first to the ninth floors.

Serhiy Fedorovych was among those injured in the attack on the capital. The man sustained shrapnel wounds, and his car was also damaged. He said he had moved to Kyiv to live with his daughter from Novopavlivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region, escaping constant shelling.

«A missile was flying from there. I had just stood up and was standing in the hall. And when it went „bang“ — I was thrown back. Glass showered down. Everything was burning, people were screaming. You see what I was wearing — I just jumped out. The police took me to the clinic. They stitched me up there,» Serhiy Fedorovych shared.

The man says he knew the neighbors from the part of the building that suffered the most destruction. He can only guess what happened to the people after the collapse.

«Well, if everything folded… It folded from the ninth floor to the first. What can be there? It’s unclear what’s there. Of course, people were screaming,» the man said.

Serhiy Fedorovych admits that after what he experienced, he doesn’t know where to look for a safe place now.

«I’m from Novopavlivka myself. I was supposed to flee from there on Saturday. From the Dnipropetrovsk region. I moved here to my daughter’s. Guided bombs were already hitting the area. I escaped here, and now I don’t know where to run next, ” he says.

18-year-old Ivan rushed to the Darnytskyi district strike site immediately after the Russian attack to save his loved ones, he told Kyiv24. His friend’s mother was trapped under the debris. Through tears, the young man helped rescuers pull «aunt Tetiana» from the rubble. She is now hospitalized, while the search for her daughter continues.

For another resident of the damaged house, Vasyl, this night could have been fatal. The man admits: he had never gone down to the shelter before, but this time something made him change his habit.

«We went down to the shelter, sat there, and it just went bang after bang, and then just a whistle. And that’s it, everything started falling into our windows. We thought it was somewhere over there, but it was at our place,» the Kyiv resident recalls.

When asked if he always goes to the shelter, the man answered frankly: «No, never. This was just the first time we decided to go down. I don’t know, some „gut feeling“ kicked in.»

Vasyl said that the moment of the hit caught him just as he was coming out of the bathroom. The force of the explosion was so powerful that the man was simply knocked off his feet.
«There was a strike. It threw me, broke my nose. I fell. Probably either the door or the window hit me, I didn’t understand anything after that. I just didn’t understand,» he said.

The man is still in a state of shock and is trying to comprehend what happened: «Whether it was the door or the window, I won’t understand. Maybe it was the wave. I just don’t understand.»

Residents also reported that several cars caught fire in the courtyard of the damaged apartment block after the latest «Shahed» drone attack.

Well-known business center damaged

The Rialto business center in Kyiv’s Podil district was also hit during the overnight attack. The building sustained major damage to its facade and internal structures, while a fire at the site was later localized.

Utility collapse on the left bank

The attack also damaged city infrastructure. Serious disruptions to water supply were reported on the left bank of the capital. «Kyivvodokanal» specialists and power engineers are already working to localize the damage and restore water supply to the residents of Darnytskyi and neighboring districts.

«Rescuers continue clearing the rubble. We are doing everything possible to save every life, ” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

A support center for affected residents has been deployed at the scene, while psychologists and volunteers continue assisting victims. Residents have been urged to stay away from rescue areas so as not to obstruct emergency equipment.