Russian forces, continuing the full-scale war against Ukraine, launched another massive air attack overnight on January 21. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, an Iskander-M ballistic missile was fired from Crimea, and a total of 97 attack drones were used, including Shahed-type UAVs and other models such as Gerbera.
The drones were reportedly launched from several directions — Russia’s Kursk and Oryol regions, the Millerovo area in Rostov region, Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Krasnodar Krai, Cape Chauda in Crimea, and Russia-occupied parts of Donetsk region. About 70 of them were Shahed-type. Ukrainian air defenses in the north, south and east of the country shot down or suppressed 84 drones.
The Ukrainian Air Force said the ballistic missile and 13 attack drones hit targets at 11 locations, while debris from a downed drone fell at one more site. The attack reportedly continued into the morning and daytime on January 21 as well.
Impact on the energy system
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy, the attacks caused partial power outages in Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv regions. In Kyiv city and Kyiv region, the situation remains difficult amid cold weather due to additional load: hourly outage schedules are said to be temporarily not in effect.
As First Deputy Energy Minister Artem Nekrasov noted, repair crews and municipal services are working nonstop, and additional emergency teams from other regions have been brought in to restore “light and heat” in the capital.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that due to constant strikes, about 4,000 homes in Kyiv were left without heating, and nearly 60% of buildings have no electricity. He added that outside the capital the toughest situation is seen in Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions.
One injured in Odesa
Odesa Regional Military Administration head Oleh Kiper reported on Telegram that one person was injured in the attack. He said civilian and industrial infrastructure was damaged, private homes in Odesa district were hit, and a warehouse storing furniture products was destroyed.
In short, the “air attack — electricity — heat” chain repeated for Ukraine again last night. At the same time, officials stress that air defenses worked actively, repair teams are operating continuously, and restoration is ongoing — the situation is severe, but the system has not collapsed.
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