Search icon

News

08th Apr 2022

More than 30 killed as rockets hit Kramatorsk train station in east Ukraine

Danny Jones

Kramatorsk train station

Hundreds are said to have been attacked while fleeing.

More than 30 people are thought to have been killed and over 100 wounded after Russian airstrikes hit Kramatorsk train station in east Ukraine on Friday, 8 April.

The attack took place in the Donetsk Oblast region while civilians were trying to evacuate to safer parts of the country, according to the state railway company.

The company said two Russian rockets had struck a station in the city of Kramatorsk which is used for the evacuation of civilians from areas under bombardment by Russian forces.

Thousands of people were said to be at the station at the time of the attack, the BBC has reported.

Eyewitness Nathan Mook told the BBC that he heard the sound of five t0 explosions as he drove past the station.

“You feel it before you hear it,” said Mook. “The explosion rattles you on the inside.

“Emergency crews were on the ground very quickly, tending to people that were injured and had been killed,” Mook added.

Warning: graphic footage – may cause distress

Writing on Telegram, Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko confirmed two Russian rockets hit the station and the local city council has warned citizens to seek safety in shelters.

He went on to state:

“The ‘Rashists’ [Russian fascists’] knew very well where they were aiming and what they wanted.

“They wanted to sow panic and fear, they wanted to take as many civilians as possible.”

While reports and exact details are yet to be confirmed, the majority of casualties are thought to be civilians.

Russia has yet to issue a response but has continued to deny targeting innocents since the invasion began.

LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge