Second Russian Strike on Kyiv’s Southern Bridge Damages Support, Halts Metro

A Russian drone struck Kyiv’s Southern (Pivdennyi) Bridge the second time on Thursday, damaging a bridge support and forcing authorities to halt metro and surface transport across it. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko first reported the strike at 9:50 p.m. local Kyiv time, saying the drone had hit the bridge’s roadway and that emergency services were heading to the scene.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. In a follow-up statement issued roughly half an hour later, Klitschko said that an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) had carried out the strike and that, according to preliminary information, it damaged a bridge support, a crash barrier, the roadway and the metro’s protective concrete barrier. No further information was provided on possible casualties or the full extent of the damage at the time of the report. Second strike today Earlier on Thursday, two Russian drones struck near the bridge’s support structure, UNN reported. The blast wave sent dust into a metro carriage through its ventilation system while the train was crossing the bridge. According to NV, the train remained intact and no passengers or crew were injured. Following an inspection, the Kyiv City State Administration said specialists had found no critical damage to the bridge after the morning attack. Ground transport resumed, while inspections of the metro structures continued. The Southern Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge over the Dnipro River that carries both road traffic and trains on the metro’s Green Line, connecting Kyiv’s eastern and western banks. Other Topics of Interest Putin Raises Nuclear Threat Over Kaliningrad, Says Russia Monitors Arms Factories in Europe Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed Moscow will not attack anyone in 2029, 2030 or 2050 but would respond if attacked. According to Meduza, the morning attack was the first Russian drone strike on one of Kyiv’s bridges since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Under new air-raid alert rules, metro trains have been allowed to cross the bridge during “yellow” alerts, with service suspended completely only during “red” alerts, which signal large-scale and ballistic missile attacks. The bridge attacks came on the same day a Russian Geran-4 drone hit a school in Kyiv’s Solomianskyi district while more than 100 children and over 60 teachers sheltered inside. Earlier on Thursday, Ukraine had used its domestically produced FP-7 tactical ballistic missile in combat for the first time, marking a milestone in Kyiv’s push to build its own strike weapons as Russia intensifies its campaign on civilian infrastructure nationwide. 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.