«Сила вибуху не залишила шансів»: що відомо про удар по рятувальниках у Харкові 15 червня

"The Force of the Explosion Left No Chance": What Is Known About the Strike on Rescuers in Kharkiv on June 15
Fresh bouquets of flowers lie near the shrapnel-scarred concrete fence of an enterprise in the Kholodnohirskyi district that was subjected to Russian shelling. Next to them are portraits of the deceased. A secondary strike claimed the lives of four rescuers from the State Emergency Service (SES) of the Kharkiv region and an employee of the Department of Emergency Situations of the Kharkiv City Council. Work gloves remain on the ground, and dozens of holes from debris are left on the fence.

The first photo installed near the fence was a portrait of Oleksiy Dorozhkin, an employee of the city Department of Emergency Situations.

"Oleksiy had been working since the very inception of the department. Before that, he was an officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and a diver. He was one of our best employees. He was the only person in our team who professionally operated drones during emergency rescue and search operations. This is a very massive loss for us," says Bohdan Hladkykh, director of the Department of Emergency Situations.

The fire at the enterprise broke out at around 10:00 p.m. following a drone strike.

"The SES units and representatives of our department deployed to the scene. Our task was to organize emergency rescue operations. It was necessary to attract additional water tankers from municipal utility services to extinguish the fire," explains Hladkykh.

At around 01:24 a.m., Russian troops launched a secondary strike with four missiles.

"Preliminarily, according to the conclusions of explosives experts, these were Iskander-M ballistic missiles. And the fourth missile hit directly where the SES rescuers and our employee were positioned. This hit occurred outside the territory of the enterprise, not within it. The personnel had been warned in advance about the ballistic threat and had moved 400 to 500 meters away from the enterprise. However, the enemy launched a targeted strike precisely at them. The people were less than 30 meters away from the epicenter of the explosion," says the director of the department.

All the deceased were wearing personal protective equipment, but it was not enough to save them, Hladkykh adds: "They were wearing bulletproof vests, helmets, and protective gear. But the force of the explosion was such that, unfortunately, there was no chance of survival. The people died instantly."

Later, another photo was set up near the fence—a portrait of rescuer Danylo Tishchenko. On June 16, he was supposed to celebrate his 21st birthday. Danylo was a graduate of Kharkiv Lyceum No. 62. He joined the ranks of the State Emergency Service in February 2022. He was unmarried; his parents survive him.

Three of Danylo’s fellow colleagues also perished in the strike:

Dmytriy Boyko, department commander and chief master sergeant of the civil defense service. He was 54 years old, originally from Kharkiv. In 2022, he received the Presidential Award “For the Defense of Ukraine”. He is survived by his mother and his wife.

Serhiy Makovetsky, originally from the village of Budy, Kharkiv district, aged 41. He is survived by his parents, his wife, and two sons.

Vadym Zinchenko, a 42-year-old unit driver. He was originally from Zolochiv, Bohodukhiv district.

According to Yevhen Vasylenko, spokesman for the Main Department of the State Emergency Service in the Kharkiv region, emergency services arrived at the facility immediately after the first hit.

"Unfortunately, as a result of this secondary strike, four of our comrades died—rescuers of the 6th state fire and rescue unit. These were all rescuers from one guard rotation who arrived to eliminate the consequences of the attack. The enemy cynically struck the exact place where they were working," Vasylenko said.

Nine more people sustained injuries as a result of the attack, including six employees of the State Emergency Service.

"There are rescuers currently in serious condition. Among the wounded is a young woman who recently joined the ranks of the State Emergency Service after graduating from a specialized university. She sustained very severe injuries, resulting in the amputation of an upper limb," the spokesman stated.

Oleksandra Shchebilova, a graduate of the Educational and Scientific Institute of Fire and Technogenic Safety of the National University of Civil Defense of Ukraine, lost her right arm and will require long-term rehabilitation and prosthetics, the university confirmed. They have announced a fundraiser to support her.

MonoBank card number for donations: 4874 1000 3909 3094

The Kharkiv Garrison of the State Emergency Service and the city council have promised to provide financial assistance to the families of the deceased and the injured. The final farewell to the fallen rescuers will take place on the official day of mourning, June 17.

The owner of the enterprise, Anatoliy Rudy, inspects the remains of his manufacturing facility near the ash-covered site. The workshops burned down to the ground.

"We produced plastic products for the needs of Ukraine here—baseboards, containers for cosmetics, and PVC products. Nothing is left. Everything burned down. Last year, our basement burned down. This year, the entire production line. And there was an arrival even earlier than that," Rudy recalls.

At the moment of the impact, there were no people inside the enterprise. "It was the weekend for us. There is no on-site security; everything is managed under video surveillance," says the owner.

Opposite the enterprise, 91-year-old Olena lives in a private residential house. This is the third shelling that has affected her home since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. This time, the damage was contained entirely inside the house.

"The dishes were shattered, the portraits under glass flew off, and the door was ripped out," says Olena.

She was awake at the time of the night attack. "I was watching television. It was about half past twelve in the morning. The first explosion happened very close by—everything shook, the dishes rang, and the portraits fell off the wall. I thought everything would calm down. And then there was a second explosion. That was the scariest thing of all," she recalls.

The woman notes that she has already seen a similar scene on April 2 and June 2, 2025—back then, the windows were shattered by blast waves. Olena Grigorievna learned about the tragic death of the rescuers almost immediately.

"I kept looking out the window. There was no power, only the emergency cars were illuminated. Many young guys were running around. And the fire there was terrible—flames to the sky and thick smoke," she says.

The resident also notes that the day before, she spotted an unfamiliar young man near the company who took several photos of the area. "He walked past, then came back and took photos again. I thought right then that something was wrong here," says the resident.

Despite everything she has experienced, Ms. Olena has no intention of relocating: "I will turn 92 in two months. Where can I go now?"

Rescuers, utility workers, and emergency services have been working non-stop at the site of the Russian strike since the night. Some are dismantling the rubble and clearing debris, while others are actively restoring the damaged utility networks. People continue to carry flowers to the fence cut to pieces by shrapnel.