Kherson residents describe daily 'drone terror' as Russian strikes on civilians intensify
Russian forces are increasingly using drones to hunt civilians in Kherson, with more than 80 people killed and over 1,200 injured since the start of the year. The head of the city's military administration warns of a systematic terror campaign.
Yaroslav Shanko, head of the Kherson City Military Administration, describes in a column how Russian drone attacks have reshaped daily life in the frontline city. He explains that the proximity of enemy positions across the Dnipro river allows drone operators to watch people in real time, track their movement and choose the moment to strike — some drones reportedly wait for extended periods on rooftops until a target appears.
Figures point to a systematic campaign
According to Ukraine's Defense Forces, around 2,000 enemy drones are recorded over the Kherson community each week on average. Since the start of the year, drone strikes have killed more than 80 civilians and wounded over 1,200 in the area. Drones are now the leading cause of civilian death and injury in the city.
Shanko cites one example: on August 28, on the morning of August 19, attacks on public transport, a car and a civilian woman killed six people within a single day. Since the beginning of the year, 16 buses and 45 trolleybuses have been damaged, along with more than 770 civilian vehicles.
Daily life and economic toll
Before leaving home, Kherson residents now check Telegram monitoring channels to gauge drone activity in the area they plan to travel through, moving in quick dashes between buildings and vehicles and avoiding lingering near public transport stops.
Strikes have also hit humanitarian deliveries, including attacks on volunteers bringing water to residents and on a vehicle belonging to a UN humanitarian mission. Drone attacks along the Kherson–Mykolaiv highway have pushed delivery costs up by roughly 10%, adding pressure on local businesses and carriers.
Shanko stresses that these are not random incidents but a deliberate pattern, and calls on the international community to treat the situation as a systemic threat rather than a series of isolated attacks.
