Russian Drone Hits Apartment Building in Central Kyiv on Seventh Straight Day of Attacks

A Russian drone struck a six-story residential building in central Kyiv on Wednesday, sparking a fire as the capital came under attack for the seventh consecutive day. Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said the drone hit the residential building in the city’s Shevchenkivskyi district, causing a fire. Four people were injured in the strike, he added. Emergency crews were responding at the scene. JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Kyiv Post correspondents in central Kyiv reported hearing multiple explosions shortly after 10:45 a.m. Thick smoke was later reported over parts of the capital, with local Telegram channels warning residents to close their windows because of the smoke. The latest strike came after Russian attacks overnight and earlier Wednesday morning had already caused fires and damage across the Kyiv region. In Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, debris from a Russian drone fell in an open area and caused a fire, Klitschko said. The same district was targeted during the previous evening’s attack, when falling debris also caused a fire in an open area. A private house in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district was also set on fire. Two people were wounded in the morning attack in the Kyiv region, according to Regional Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko. What changed in Russia’s drone war in Ukraine? Since Thursday, Kyiv has been living under a constant drone siege. Other Topics of Interest Vivat Loses 35,500 Books to Russian Strike, Damage Tops $370,000 Vivat says a Russian strike on its Kyiv region warehouse destroyed more than 35,500 books worth over $372,800, with the publisher also tallying losses from strikes on its distribution partners. Russia began shifting its long-range drone tactics in Ukraine on Thursday, Aug. 27 – the large swarms once or twice a week that Kyiv residents had become accustomed to have been replaced by near-continuous waves across Ukrainian airspace As of Tuesday, Sept. 1, there has been no let-up in the strategy, with explosions ringing consistently over Kyiv and other cities, paralyzing businesses nationwide as some major chains were increasingly targeted. The good news is that the overall number launched stayed relatively consistent and Ukraine’s interception rates remain high – but the bad news is that Russia can likely keep it up for some time. No major spikes within the same timeframe – but not enough data on daytime launches. The overall number of drones launched likely increased – though those recorded overnight stayed relatively consistent. Based on the Ukrainian Air Force’s daily morning briefing, Russia launched an average of around 188 drones per night (6 p.m.-8 a.m.) between Aug. 27-31. For comparison, the average in July recorded in the same 6 p.m.-8 a.m. window was close to 160 per day, with the lowest on July 21 (58 launched) and the highest on July 2 (496 launched). The air force did not provide clear data on drones launched and intercepted outside the 6 p.m.-8 a.m. window, though its warnings over the past week suggest they range in the dozens per day. For context, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense said Russia launched 8,653 drones in July – a few thousand more than the 4,955 Kyiv Post calculated based on the air force’s morning briefings. Recent months also saw a drastic drop in total numbers launched in a single swarm, with Moscow launching a record swarm of over 1,500 drones within 24 hours in May, an attack that coincided with a renewed peace push from Washington and a reiterated hardline stance from Moscow at the time. The largest number of drones launched in a single attack was on Sept. 7, 2025, when Russia launched 805 drones overnight in an attack that killed at least four civilians. The known numbers suggest that unless Ukraine could hit Russia’s drone production, Moscow is likely able to sustain the number of launches. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.