A Russian drone struck a school in Kyiv on Thursday morning, damaging the building and starting a fire while more than 100 pupils were inside. The children had moved to a shelter before the impact, and city authorities reported no injuries at the school.
The strike took place in the Ukrainian capital’s Solomianskyi district during a day of repeated drone alerts. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said emergency services were sent to the school after the impact.
The school was one of several locations affected in Kyiv. Drones also struck near the Southern Bridge over the Dnipro River, temporarily disrupting metro services and other transport while specialists assessed the structure.
Children Were Sheltering When the School Was Hit
According to the Kyiv city administration’s running update, pupils were already in a shelter when the drone hit the school building in Solomianskyi district.
School director Valentyna Chorna told Reuters that more than 100 students were present at the time. Reuters also said it verified security-camera footage showing a bright fireball as the drone struck the building.
The school sustained visible damage, but no injuries were reported among the pupils.
The Associated Press reported that the drone’s warhead did not explode and published photographs showing police handling an unexploded warhead recovered from the site.
The available reporting confirms that the school was struck, but the sources reviewed do not establish that the school itself was deliberately selected as a target.
Southern Bridge Strike Disrupts Transport
Kyiv officials also reported that two drones struck near the supporting structure of the Southern Bridge.
Metro services and surface transport across the bridge were temporarily halted while specialists inspected the structure. Reuters reported that the bridge did not sustain major damage.
The disruption nevertheless affected journeys across the capital, illustrating how drone strikes can interrupt daily movement even when major infrastructure remains operational.
Kyiv’s official updates also recorded a strike on a non-residential complex in the Pecherskyi district and damage to warehouse premises in Solomianskyi.
Attacks Continue Beyond the School
The school strike came amid a broader series of Russian aerial attacks affecting Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine.
Reuters reported that a strike in Odesa hit a business centre and wounded one person, while Kyiv’s Institute of Nuclear Research said it had also been struck by a drone late on Wednesday, with radiation levels remaining normal.
Russia says it targets military objectives and denies deliberately targeting civilians. Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly reported damage to civilian buildings, including homes, schools and other infrastructure, since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.
What Happens Next
City officials are expected to assess the extent of the damage to the school and determine when classes can safely resume.
For the pupils inside, the immediate outcome was that they reached the shelter before impact and escaped injury. The strike also underscored the continuing role of air-raid procedures in Kyiv’s schools as drone attacks remain a recurring threat to the capital.
