Ukrainian authorities launched a number of raid alerts across the country after a fresh wave of Russian strikes in several regions.
State Emergency Service of Ukraine today said firefighters tackled a huge fire on a building as Russia hit Odesa.
In a statement, they said: “Every Ukrainian is a soldier or a rescuer, a scientist or a doctor, an energy worker or a utility worker, all of our people are descendants of those who destroyed Nazism.
“Therefore, today the goal of every Ukrainian is to stop the terror that Russia has unleashed on us! This night seemed difficult for our rescuers from Odesa, from the Donetsk region, and from the Kyiv region, the capital.
“To eliminate the consequences of enemy strikes, more than 240 personnel and more than 50 pieces of equipment were involved.
“Insidiously, at night, the terrorists continue their attacks, once again confirming their status of a terrorist state.”
Ukrainian media said that so far, three people were injured in the attack on Odesa and one person is missing.
The high alert comes after Russia also ordered the evacuation of civilians around Europe’s biggest power plant, sparking fears of a catastrophe ready to unfold.
The evacuations ordered by the Russia-backed governor of Ukraine‘s Zaporizhzhia province, Yegeny Balitsky, raised fears that fighting in the area would intensify. Balitsky on Friday ordered civilians to leave 18 Russian-occupied communities, including Enerhodar, home to most of the plant staff.
More than 1,500 people had been evacuated from two unspecified cities in the region as of Sunday, Balitsky said. The Ukrainian General Staff confirmed the evacuation of Enerhodar was underway.
Moscow’s troops seized the plant soon after invading Ukraine last year, but Ukrainian employees have continued to run it during the occupation, at times under extreme duress.
Ukraine has regularly fired at the Russian side of the lines, while Russia has repeatedly shelled Ukrainian-held communities across the Dnieper River. The fighting has intensified as Ukraine prepares to launch a long-promised counteroffensive to reclaim ground taken by Russia.
Ukrainian authorities on Sunday said that a 72-year-old woman was killed and three others were wounded when Russian forces fired more than 30 shells at the city of Nikopol, about 10 kilometres from the plant.
Although none of the plant’s six reactors are operating because of the war, the station needs a reliable power supply for cooling systems essential to preventing a potentially catastrophic radiation disaster.
