Russia attacks railways, businesses, and a civilian vessel

The Russian strikes on August 5-6 damaged several Ukrainian infrastructure and logistics links at once: a railway station in Lozova, enterprises and energy facilities in the Dnipropetrovsk region, a civilian commercial vessel in a Ukrainian port, as well as commercial and medical facilities in Balakliya.

In Lozova, a drone attacked the railway station and hit a carriage near the station. The extent of damage to the tracks, the catenary system, signalling systems and other station equipment has not yet been disclosed.

Ukrzaliznytsia did not report any train cancellations, route changes or the suspension of freight traffic via Lozova. Therefore, it is currently impossible to assess the specific impact of the attack on passenger and freight traffic.

In Balakliya, a missile strike damaged a shop, a medical facility, a garage and residential buildings. Post-disaster clean-up is ongoing on site. The local authorities have not yet clarified whether the shop and medical facility will be able to continue operating, or how seriously their premises and equipment were damaged.

In the Dnipropetrovsk region, Russian forces attacked the Nikopol and Synelnykove districts more than 30 times with artillery and drones. In the Nikopol district, enterprises, infrastructure, a shop, apartment blocks and a private house were damaged. In the Synelnykove district, a lyceum was damaged.

Due to a previous attack on the Nikopol district, some consumers were left without electricity. As of the morning of August 6, power engineers had already restored supply for the majority of subscribers, but up to 3,000 consumers remained without power. Repair works were scheduled to be completed by noon, if the security situation permitted.

In Sumy, Russian forces launched four strikes with guided bombs on civilian infrastructure in the Kovpakivskyi district. Damage was recorded in at least four locations.

The blast wave and debris damaged more than ten apartment blocks and private houses, non-residential premises, vehicles and infrastructure. Hundreds of windows were blown out in neighbouring buildings. The premises of local businesses also suffered significant damage, which could temporarily disrupt their operations.

A separate strike hit maritime logistics. On the evening of August 5, Russian forces attacked the civilian vessel MERA QUEEN under the flag of Guinea-Bissau, which was in the waters of a Ukrainian port. As of the morning of August 6, the vessel had moored at a berth, where specialists are containing the aftermath of the strike and stabilising its technical condition.

Effectively, the vessel was temporarily put out of service, and emergency works are underway at the berth. At the same time, the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority did not specify what cargo was on board, whether port equipment was damaged, or whether other vessels experienced delays. There are also no data on the suspension of the Ukrainian Maritime Corridor.

The USPA stated that for more than a month, Russia has been attacking Ukrainian port infrastructure and merchant vessels on an almost daily basis. Repeated strikes increase risks for shipowners, crews, exporters and insurance companies, on which the stability of maritime traffic depends.

The attacks in Lozova killed two people and injured eight. In Balakliya, five people were wounded; in the Dnipropetrovsk region, two. A Ukrainian seafarer died on board MERA QUEEN, and the remaining crew members were brought ashore.

Based on materials from: Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority