Russian-held Sevastopol loses power after Ukrainian drone attack on energy infrastructure

Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Russia-appointed governor of Sevastopol, said at midnight that the city had been temporarily left without electricity following a Ukrainian drone attack on energy infrastructure. He urged residents to conserve phone batteries and avoid overloading the grid once power is restored.

An air raid alert was declared in the city late in the evening, after which local residents reported explosions. The Telegram channel Krymsky Veter said Russian mobile fire groups had fired at drones over the Gagarinsky district, and that the drones were heading toward the Balaklava Thermal Power Plant. Later, posts in public channels discussed a strike on the plant.

According to Krymsky Veter, debris from a drone or missile fell on a car near the Balaklava plant as a result of Russian air defense operations. People in the vehicle may have been killed. In addition, around 10:50 p.m. a fire broke out at a major water supply facility near the village of Shturmovoye, where a hydroelectric complex that supplies the city with water is located. The cause of the fire is unknown.

Meanwhile, there were reports of drones flying over Simferopol and the Bakhchisarai district, shooting near the Tavricheskaya Thermal Power Plant, and Russian air defense operations near the Gvardeyskoye airfield. At 1:54 a.m., traffic across the Kerch Bridge was halted for an hour and a half. In Kerch, a fire was recorded near the Nizhny Solnechny neighborhood at around 10:00 p.m.

Razvozhayev declared the alert over at 12:23 a.m. but did not report the consequences of the attack. Russian authorities and the Defense Ministry did not comment in detail on the extent of the damage. Ukrainian military officials had not officially commented as of the time of publication. Data on casualties and destruction has not been promptly confirmed.

Sources differ: Razvozhayev reported only a temporary power outage, while Krymsky Veter and other Telegram channels write of a strike on the Balaklava Thermal Power Plant, a fire at the water utility, and possible deaths from falling debris.