Ukrainian Drone Attack Halts Operations at Russian Oil Refinery, Causing Damage to Thermal Energy Plants

A suspected Ukrainian drone attack on Saturday impacted a Russian oil refinery in the southern Krasnodar region, as reported by local officials. Regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev mentioned that Kyiv had launched the drones in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The oil refinery in Slavyansk-on-Kuban, located in Krasnodar Krai, has temporarily stopped operations. This information was reported by Russian state media outlet TASS. The security director for the Slavyansk ECO Group, Eduard Trudnev, mentioned that the facility had to partially suspend its activities. Trudnev explained that this decision was made after 10 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) entered the refinery, leading to a fire breaking out.

Trudnev mentioned that there could be hidden damage.

According to Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Kyiv attempted to attack the Krasnodar region with 66 drones on Saturday, but they were all successfully intercepted.

Kondratyev said there were no casualties due to the refinery fire.

This screen grab from a video posted on Telegram by Vasiliy Anokhin, the governor of the Smolensk region in Russia, shows a fuel depot on fire in Smolensk, Russia, on April 20. The video has been geolocated by CNN.

A fuel depot in Smolensk, Russia was shown on fire in a video posted on Telegram by Vasiliy Anokhin, the governor of the Smolensk region in Russia, on April 20. CNN has verified the location of the incident.

Related article

Ukraine launches drone attacks targeting Russian energy infrastructure, Ukraine special services source says

In Ukraine, four thermal energy plants were severely damaged due to Russian attacks overnight, as reported by DTEK, the country's largest private energy company. According to a statement from DTEK, power engineers are currently working to address the aftermath of the attack.

Ukraine’s Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko took to Facebook to share that facilities in Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Lviv regions were targeted in attacks. According to Halushchenko, a power engineer at one of the facilities sustained a concussion.

Serhii Lysak, the head of the Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration, gave an update on Telegram, stating that the region had been hit by a "massive attack."

In Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and Pavlohrad districts, the air defenses were able to intercept 13 missiles. However, there was damage to energy facilities in Dnipro and Kryvyi Rih districts, leading to fires and causing injuries to a 39-year-old man. Lysak also mentioned that there were water supply disruptions in the Kryvyi Rih district.

Svitlana Onyshchuk, the head of the Ivano-Frankivsk regional military administration, reported on Saturday via Telegram that a "critical infrastructure facility" in the Carpathian region was hit, resulting in a fire that has now been extinguished.

DTEK revealed that their thermal power plants have been targeted over 170 times since the start of the war.

Mykola Oleshchuk, who is the Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, revealed on Saturday that Ukraine was targeted by Russia during the night using a total of 34 missiles launched from air, land, and sea. Fortunately, 21 of these missiles were successfully intercepted.

In response to the attack, hospitals in the area were evacuated for safety measures.

On Friday, two hospitals in Kyiv had to be evacuated due to concerns raised by Belarus about soldiers being hidden inside, causing worries in Ukraine about a potential attack on the buildings.

A video that circulated online featured the leader of the Belarusian KGB security service accusing the two medical centers of harboring soldiers.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy recently visited new fortifications near the Russian border in the Kharkiv region. The purpose of his visit was to inspect the facilities for Ukrainian servicemen. The image above shows President Zelenskiy during his inspection.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy inspects new fortifications for Ukrainian servicemen, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Russian border in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, April 9, 2024. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.

Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout/Reuters

Related article

Ukrainian President Zelensky revealed that Ukraine had depleted its supply of missiles to prevent a Russian attack on a power plant.

During a speech on Thursday, Belarusian KGB head Ivan Tertel accused Ukrainian fighters of using children as shields and shared the addresses of two hospitals in northeast Kyiv, including a children's hospital.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko responded to the enemy's threat by stating that they have practically announced their attack and even named the targets. He described it as a provocation to justify targeting the city's critical infrastructure.

Authorities in Kyiv quickly began relocating patients to different medical facilities due to concerns about a possible attack.

The Kyiv city administration stated that the claim of targeting social infrastructure in the capital is completely false and intended to provoke conflict with the enemy.

Online videos depicted medical staff quickly transferring patients and equipment to waiting ambulances.

By Friday evening, all patients were safely transferred to different medical facilities. Klitschko expressed his gratitude to the doctors, technical staff, and ambulance workers for their efficient and well-coordinated efforts.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) rejected the suggestion that soldiers were stationed at the hospitals, labeling it as a tactic used in information and psychological warfare that benefits Russia.

Ukrainian authorities are yet to say whether the urgent transfer has resulted in complications for any of the patients.

CNN’s Radina Gigova and Yulia Kesaieva also contributed reporting.

Editor's P/S: