Russia has carried out massive strikes on the railway infrastructure in five regions of Ukraine on the night of October 14. Sites in Kharkiv, Kyiv, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi and Ternopil regions were affected, the chairman of the board of directors of “Ukrzaliznytsia“ Oleksandr Pertsovsky announced.
According to him, the attacks hit locomotive and wagon depots, repair plants, stations, stations and rolling stock. The attack cut off the power supply to part of the network and blocked key routes.
“The electrical network was taken out of service, but our specialists restored it immediately. Key routes were blocked due to serious damage, so we organized alternative routes and ensured passage“, said Pertsovsky.He pointed out that passengers and employees were warned in advance and evacuated. According to him, the night passed without injuries or deaths, but the material damage is significant, and restoration work began early in the morning.
Trains are running late
Due to the damage, a large number of trains are running late, in some places reaching several hours. The railway operator is using bypass routes to maintain traffic on as much of the network as possible.
In parallel with the restoration of the infrastructure, “Ukrzaliznytsia“ plans to stop two trains from October 20. These are trains No. 79/80 on the Dnieper-Lviv route and No. 31/32 on the Zaporizhia-Przemysl line.
The company attributed the decision to the deteriorating security situation and a significant drop in the number of passengers. The two routes connect central and eastern regions of Ukraine with the western part of the country and Poland.
New series of attacks on railways
The night attack is part of a series of attacks on the Ukrainian railway network. On September 8, Russian forces attacked passenger trains of “Ukrzaliznytsia“ three times in one day. People were injured and one company employee died.
Ukrainian Railways remains the main channel for the movement of passengers and cargo in the country. Damage to depots, electrical facilities, stations and rolling stock directly affects the timetable, intercity connections and international routes.
Sources: news.bg, ru.interfax.com.ua, radiosvoboda.org