07-05-2025
"Russian drone struck our house": how woman with four children survived nighttime attack on Kyiv
The night of 6–7 May in Kyiv, which once again came under intense Russian attack, proved to be yet another ordeal for families with children. Iryna and her four children slept no more than two hours due to a large-scale assault – first with missiles, then with drones.
Source: Iryna in an interview with UNICEF Ukraine
Quote from Iryna: "First, there was a rocket attack, and then a Shahed drone struck our house directly. The windows were blown out and the balcony destroyed. Thank God, my children and I were hiding at the time. There are injured children in our building – they were taken to hospital with burns."
Iryna with her youngest son in a shelter
Photo: UNICEF Ukraine
Details: The woman has a bandage on her forehead – she sustained a cut during the attack.
The family is now taking shelter in a hospital close to their home. Her older daughters, nine-year-old Mariia and four-year-old Viktoriia, doze on wooden benches as their mother rocks her youngest child.
Iryna with her youngest son and two daughters
Photo: UNICEF Ukraine
In the chaos and panic following the explosion, Iryna did not bring any food for the children. "It's a blessing I can breastfeed Davyd here," says the 38-year-old woman.
Other residents of the house in a shelter with their pets
The family does not know when they will be able to return home. Electricity and gas supplies were cut off immediately after the strike.
"There was a big fire, and I was afraid it would reach the gas pipe. Now we're waiting for the electricity to come back on – it's cold at home," says Iryna's eldest son, 15-year-old Oleh.
The house that was hit on 7 May
Background:
The State Emergency Service of Ukraine reported that two people were killed and six were injured, including four children, during the night attack on Kyiv. Among the victims are two children.
In Kyiv's Shevchenkivskyi district, a woman and her son who had taken in 10 cats were killed. Animal rescuers found one cat alive, but it suffered severe burns.
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