Russia attacked rescuers three times a day at site of deadly school strike in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region
Russian forces attacked emergency responders with drones three times in one day while they were clearing the aftermath of an airstrike on a school in Komyshuvahe, Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region. Two rescuers were injured and a fire engine was damaged twice. By 8 November, rescuers had recovered the bodies of 55 people from the school rubble, while 45 people remained listed as missing.
Key points
- Russian drone attacks targeted State Emergency Service rescuers three times in one day in Komyshuvahe
- Two rescuers were injured and hospitalised
- The second drone strike hit a fire engine, injuring its driver and damaging the vehicle
- A third attack came about an hour later while rescuers were evacuating the damaged vehicle, injuring another driver and causing further damage
- Rescuers had worked at the school strike site for seven days
- Bodies of 55 people had been recovered from the school rubble by 8 November, with 45 people still listed as missing
- Two rescuers and four police officers were among the dead
Why it matters
The attacks injured emergency responders working at the site of a mass-casualty airstrike, underscoring the danger faced by personnel conducting rescue and body-recovery operations. They occurred while searches for missing people and recovery efforts were still under way at the destroyed school.
What happened
On 2 November, Russian forces struck Komyshuvahe with aerial bombs and dropped several bombs on a school and shelters where people were sheltering and receiving humanitarian aid. Rescuers from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine worked at the site and cleared rubble from the school. During one day, Russian forces attacked the rescuers with drones three times. The second attack hit a fire engine, injuring its driver and damaging the vehicle. About an hour later, a third attack struck while rescuers were evacuating the damaged vehicle, injuring another driver and causing additional damage. Both injured rescuers were hospitalised and were receiving medical assistance. By 8 November, rescuers had recovered the bodies of 55 people from the school rubble. Some bodies were too severely damaged for visual identification and required DNA testing, and some people still being searched for may be among the dead whose bodies have not yet been identified.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian reporting centres on the emergency response: the timing and circumstances of the three drone attacks, the injuries to rescuers, the damage to the fire engine and the continuation of rescue operations. Reports also cite the State Emergency Service's description of the attacks as deliberate targeting of those who protect and rescue civilians, and identify two rescuers and four police officers among the dead.
Background
The strike on 2 November on a school and shelters in Komyshuvahe was reported as the deadliest by death toll in Zaporizhzhia Oblast in nearly five years of the full-scale war. Emergency and rescue operations at the site continued for a seventh day. By 8 November, 55 bodies had been recovered and 45 people remained listed as missing.