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Russian drones killed two people and injured at least 25 more in the capital in the early hours of Sept. 23, local authorities reported, as Russian drones fell in two districts near the Central Station.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said two people were killed as a result of Russian strikes, and 25 other residents were injured as of 13:37 p.m. local time. Seventeen of the injured were being treated in city hospitals, he added.
Russian drones came down in the Holosiivskyi, Darnitskyi, and Solomianskyi districts of Kyiv, the latter of which also hosts the Kyiv Central Station.
A fire broke out in the historic railway market “Shayba” near the Central Station, Kyiv Independent reporters confirmed. The round structure was built in the 70’s as an experimental indoor market.
Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, chairman of the board of Ukrzaliznytsia, said that Russia struck railway infrastructure in Kyiv and injured one of their workers.
At 11:02 am local time, Ukrzaliznytsia said that the Kyiv Central Station was not damaged by the Russian strikes.
Damage at the historic railway market “Shayba” near Kyiv’s Central Station after Russia’s attack on Kyiv on Sept. 23, 2026 (Anastasiia Kasinchuk/The Kyiv Independent)
Schoolchildren, among others, were sheltering in the Kyiv metro as Russian drones flew over the capital during rush hour.
While the full extent of the damage caused is not fully clear at the moment, smoke was visible from the city centre following the Russian attacks in various parts of Kyiv , according to Kyiv Independent journalists on the ground.
In the Solomianskyi district, a Russian drone struck a 9-story residential building, Klitschko said.
Klitschko also said that drone debris fell in the Solomianskyi district of the capital in an area between residential buildings, and a fire broke out in the area of a transportation company.
A Russian drone also crashed into a four-story business center in the Holosiivskyi district of Kyiv, according to the mayor. A gas station and warehouses in the Holosiivskyi district were also targeted.
In Darnytskyi district, a fire broke out in a warehouse, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration (KMDA).
Internet providers in Kyiv reported network outages after the Russian attacks damaged data centers of the companies Pavutina and UTELS.
Damage at the historic railway market “Shayba” near Kyiv’s Central Station after Russia’s attack on Kyiv on Sept. 23, 2026 (Anastasiia Kasinchuk/The Kyiv Independent)
In Kyiv Oblast, Russian attacks over the past day damaged 18 facilities, injuring three people, including a 76-year-old man, Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv Regional State Administration, said.
The attacks came on the same day that Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Kyiv of the potential for a new large-scale strike by Russia, referencing intelligence reports.
Kyiv authorities don’t have the resources to build shelters at every gas station, while the city also faces a shortage of weapons needed to intercept Russian drones and missiles, Klitschko said on Sept. 11.
Russia has recently employed a new tactic of using drones for hours-long attacks on Kyiv, putting residents on edge and into shelters throughout the day and night.
The Kyiv Independent.
