Russia hits Kyiv power facility, Ukrainian officials say

A Russian missile strike hit a power facility in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Saturday, jeopardizing the city’s energy supply.

“After an insidious shelling of an energy infrastructure facility in the Kyiv region, we have serious consequences, but they can be minimized,” wrote Kyiv Oblast Gov. Oleksiy Kuleba and Deputy Head of the President’s Office Kyrylo Tymoshenko on Telegram.

The two leaders encouraged residents of the Kyiv region to reduce their energy consumption, particularly during peak hours.

“All that is necessary is to approach electricity consumption as rationally as possible today,” they wrote. “Please limit the use of electricity as much as possible today from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. And everything will be fine.”

The officials said that Kyiv residents might have to use candles to light their homes and “suffer all the consequences associated with the lack of electricity” if they fail to follow energy guidelines in the wake of the strike.

Ukrainian troops defended Kyiv in April, beating back Russian forces from the area. The country’s military have since executed a lightning effort against the Russian military over the past month, claiming a succession of victories in the southern and eastern parts of Ukraine.

The shelling comes after an explosion downed a bridge connecting Russia and the Crimean Peninsula, a major supply link for the aggressor.

Russia has since blamed Ukraine for the explosion and retaliated by striking a number of cities, including Kyiv.

Tymoshenko also called on residents of the Zhytomyr, Cherkasy and Chernihiv regions, which all border Kyiv, to limit their electricity consumption.

The shelling did not injure or kill any residents of the Kyiv region despite its damage of the power facility, according to Kuleba.