Russian drone attack on Kyiv munitions warehouse kills 27 and prompts criminal investigation

Fatal strike in Bucha district

A Russian drone strike on a warehouse in the Kyiv region killed at least 27 people and wounded 42 others on Friday evening. The attack occurred shortly after 8:00 p.m. (17:00 GMT) in the village of Myla, situated within the Bucha district west of Ukraine's capital. The explosion ignited a large fire that quickly spread to neighbouring structures, damaging at least 50 residential buildings, a restaurant, and a local care home. More than 380 residents were evacuated from the surrounding area as emergency teams worked to contain the secondary detonations and flames.

Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv regional military administration, confirmed that Taras Didych, the mayor of the village of Dmytrivska, was among the deceased as rescue operations continued on Saturday.

Unfortunately, as things stand, 27 people are known to have died. And this figure may not be final.

Government inquiry into storage negligence

The incident prompted immediate legal action after Ukrainian prosecutors disclosed that the facility was being used to store explosive objects and munitions. The prosecutor's office opened a criminal investigation into negligence, focusing on whether the unnamed operator held required permits and whether storage regulations had been breached near populated areas. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the disaster, confirming that criminal proceedings had begun regarding the detonation.

There are regulations in place - ammunition cannot be stored near homes or other residential areas.

Prime Minister Sergii Koretskyi condemned the management of the facility, comparing the disaster to a July attack on a state-owned munitions depot in Vyshneve, also near Kyiv. That previous investigation revealed safety failures where munitions were housed adjacent to civilian homes. Koretskyi demanded accountability across the administration for the repeated failure to enforce storage distances.

In the fifth year of the full-scale invasion, making the same mistakes over and over is criminal negligence.

Coordinated strikes on Ukrainian logistics

The fatal explosion occurred during a third consecutive day of continuous air alerts across Kyiv. Russia has expanded its drone and missile operations against transport nodes, distribution hubs, and commercial retailers. On Friday alone, Ukraine's State Emergency Service recorded 38 attacks across the Kyiv region. These strikes damaged 14 warehouse premises, 16 private homes, and three apartment blocks in regional settlements.

Targeted strikes hit private courier Nova Poshta's sorting centres near Kyiv and in the northern city of Sumy, as well as a book distribution depot in the Kyiv area. In the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia, an aerial strike on an Epicenter home-improvement store wounded four people according to Governor Ivan Fedorov. Ukrainian authorities noted that Kharkiv suffered two retail strikes in 48 hours, while passenger rail services experienced extensive scheduling delays following 15 hours of air alarms on Thursday. Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Centre for Countering Disinformation, stated that Russian forces are deploying small waves of jet-powered drones specifically to exhaust regional air defence systems and municipal infrastructure.