On 24 October, at around 6 pm, a Russian drone struck civilian infrastructure in Synelnykove, Dnipropetrovsk region, some 80 kilometres from the frontline.
The strike occurred in an area with homes, cafés and shops, less than one kilometre from a hospital supported by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Four people were killed and more than 13 injured in the attack according to the Ukrainian authorities. The hospital responded to a mass-casualty incident.
One patient told me he had just stepped out for a coffee, but ended up in hospital with serious injuriesKarina Ivanova, an MSF anaesthetist
“We heard the sound of a drone, and moments later there was a loud explosion.
Patients began arriving one after another with blast injuries to their limbs, abdomen, chest and head. Some also had burns.
Several patients had severe bleeding and needed emergency surgery. One patient told me he had just stepped out for a coffee, but ended up in hospital with serious injuries,” says Karina Ivanova, an MSF anaesthetist.
Local medical staff, working alongside an MSF anaesthetist and paramedics, treated 15 people, including four with severe injuries.
An MSF ambulance transferred two patients — a 50-year-old woman and a 20-year-old woman — to a hospital in Dnipro for specialised surgery.
Some patients, including 11-year-old child, experienced acute stress reactions and received mental health support from local psychologists.
Repeated attacks by Russian forces are killing and wounding civilians in the capital Kyiv, in regions next to the frontlines, and even in towns and cities hundreds of kilometres away in central and western Ukraine. MSF condemns attacks on civilian infrastructure. This is a war against people — against civilians trying to live their everyday lives.
