A massive overnight drone attack struck St. Petersburg and the surrounding Leningrad region, targeting critical infrastructure including an oil terminal and a data center operated by the VK social networking service. Russian media described the barrage as one of the largest on the area since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Regional officials confirmed one fatality and 15 injuries.
Leningrad Region Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko reported that air defenses downed 144 drones. Falling debris ignited fires and damaged 55 vehicles in Gatchina and other districts. Emergency power cuts affected approximately 20,000 residents across 50 apartment blocks in Yanino after two transformer substations were knocked offline; restoration efforts were underway Sunday morning.
VK’s press office confirmed its data center in the region was hit but stated its services remained fully operational for users.
In St. Petersburg, Governor Aleksandr Beglov said fires erupted at civilian infrastructure sites across four districts — Nevsky, Krasnoselsky, Krasnogvardeisky, and Moskovsky — as well as at the St. Petersburg oil terminal in the Great Port. Preliminary reports indicated no injuries at the terminal, which handles 1.1 million tonnes of fuel monthly across four berths and 32 storage tanks spanning 442,000 square meters.
A separate fire broke out at an Ozon warehouse, prompting staff evacuations and road closures as smoke billowed over the complex.
Flights at Pulkovo Airport were suspended for over seven hours before Russia’s aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, lifted restrictions at 10:00 a.m. Moscow time.
Russian Strikes on Ukraine
The attack coincided with renewed Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy grid. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday night’s barrage targeted substations in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Odesa regions, leaving tens of thousands of households without power. Repair crews were working around the clock to restore supply, he wrote on X.
Zelenskyy added that Russian attacks on residential areas killed two people and injured 12 others. Over the past week, he said, Russia launched nearly 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 aerial bombs, and 66 missiles against Ukraine.
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