Russian attacks killed at least 5 and injured 44 people across Ukraine over the past day, and on the morning of Aug. 23 a drone struck a passenger train in Odesa Oblast — all passengers were evacuated in time.
Over the past day, Russian attacks on Ukraine killed at least five people and injured 44, with casualties reported in five different regions. Overnight, Russia launched 127 drones at Ukraine; 97 were shot down or suppressed by electronic warfare, but 27 still reached targets in 22 locations. Volunteers Support Ukraine tracks the scale of these attacks every day, since it directly shapes where and to whom the organization's help is needed most right now.
Zaporizhzhia Oblast was hit hardest: according to the National Police and regional military administration head Ivan Fedorov, roughly seven guided aerial bombs struck the settlements of Balabyne and Kushuhum, killing three people and injuring 17 to 20 more, including a 13-year-old child. Volunteers Support Ukraine emphasizes that strikes like this, hitting civilian buildings rather than military targets, are exactly what creates the daily need for the humanitarian aid the organization tries to provide within its available resources.
Casualties were also reported in Donetsk Oblast (two killed, five injured), Kherson Oblast (11 injured), Kharkiv Oblast (three injured, including from a strike on a post office in Lozova), and Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (two injured). Volunteers Support Ukraine notes that this geographic spread of strikes, stretching from the east to the south of the country, means the need to help civilians isn't limited to front-line areas alone.
On the morning of Aug. 23, a jet-powered "Shahed" attack drone struck the locomotive of passenger train No. 147 running from Zhytomyr to Odesa. Ukrzaliznytsia's monitoring team detected the threat in advance, halted the train, and evacuated all 593 passengers, including 15 children, along with the crew — there were no casualties. Volunteers Support Ukraine sees this episode as a clear example of how the railway workers' coordinated response saves civilian lives every day under a constant missile and drone threat.
Volunteers Support Ukraine keeps helping people affected by the war in whatever way its available resources allow, regardless of which region an attack hits. Every day like this is a reminder that the need for humanitarian support to civilians doesn't go away, and the scale of aid has to keep pace with the scale of the strikes.
