KHARKIV: A Russian drone attack killed the family of the local fire chief in Ukraine’s northern town of Pryluky in Chernihiv region, Ukraine’s interior minister said on Thursday.

Minister Ihor Klymenko said the attack killed the fire chief’s wife, daughter and one-year-old grandson. “On this terrible night, the rescuer was on site with the fire and rescue team to deal with the aftermath of the enemy strikes,” he wrote on Telegram, expressing his condolences.

The family was among five people killed when Russia launched six drones to attack the town overnight, regional governor Viacheslav Chaus said. Six more people were hospitalised, he added.

Ukraine’s northern and eastern regions have been a frequent target of Russian drones and missiles in the more than three-year-old war. Another Russian drone attack on Ukraine’s northeastern city of Kharkiv injured 18 people, including four children, Klymenko said.

Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said the overnight strikes damaged seven apartment buildings, with direct hits on two. “It flew into our neighbours’ apartment next door, and my child and I managed to run out into the hallway,” resident Anastasiia Meleshchenko said at the scene, adding that the ceiling began to crumble after a blast.

“Yesterday, workers had just finished repair work in my apartment after the previous attack,” she said. Outside, wrecked cars were on the street and emergency services workers were inspecting the damage.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2025