Search and rescue operation completed after Russia's 1 January attack on Kyiv – photos

A search and rescue operation has been completed at a residential building in Kyiv's Pecherskyi district, which was damaged by wreckage from a Russian drone on 1 January. Emergency recovery efforts are now underway.

Source: Interfax Ukraine, citing Pavlo Petrov, a spokesman for the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Kyiv

Quote: "We can now confirm that the search and rescue operation has been completed, and emergency recovery work is ongoing. Rescue workers are currently clearing debris from the roof and the fifth floor, where the damage was most severe. We hope to finish the recovery efforts today."

Details: Petrov reported that 50 rescue workers and 11 units of equipment from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Kyiv, along with nearly 30 rescue workers and 9 units of equipment from the Interregional Rapid Response Center, are currently working at the site.

He also noted that utility services are at work in nearby buildings, including the administrative building where a fire broke out, and residential buildings. They are removing glass and wreckage, and clearing the roads.

Quote: "They're doing everything they can to ensure people can return home as quickly as possible," the spokesperson said.

Petrov said that rescue workers faced challenges during the operation.

Quote: "The scale of destruction was unusually large in some areas. We had a collapsed stairwell between the third and fifth floors, but we've already resolved that issue. Now, rescue workers are clearing the roof. Our biggest hindrance is the very heavy structural elements there. They have to be disassembled directly on the roof, and some of them we can't just take apart and get down. We are bringing in large-scale high-altitude equipment to lower these elements," he said.

Petrov also said that a headquarters has been established to coordinate assistance for the people who have lost their homes.

Quote: "Currently, no one is living in this building. The residents have been relocated," he added.

Background:

• Wreckage from a Russian drone fell on a residential building in Kyiv’s Pecherskyi district on the morning of 1 January, partially destroying the top two floors and causing a fire. Two people were killed as a result of the attack. 
• Ihor Zyma and Olesia Sokur, a husband and wife who were both scientists, were killed in the Russian drone attack on the city of Kyiv on the morning of 1 January.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated, "Even on New Year’s Eve, Russia was focused solely on inflicting pain on Ukraine."

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