‘We heard drone engines, then orange lights above’

A SWARM of Russian attack drones brought terror to a historic neighbourhood in the waning evening light, leaving local residences and offices in tatters and flames.

- JOHN MARONE

Vita, who lives in the building across the road, was standing in her bathrobe, frightened and bewildered. She said: “My daughter and I were sleeping when I heard the explosion and saw a flash of orange light.”

Valya, who lives in a building hit by a drone, was still rummaging through the wreckage of her flat. She and her son were at home when the strike took place. She said: “I had just got out of bed to go to the kitchen when it happened.”

Her bedroom and the rest of the apartment were filled with glass from smashed windows, floors covered with broken household items.