What did the days before 15 April 2024 reveal about the war?
A look back at the strikes on energy infrastructure and cities that preceded 15 April 2024, and what they meant for public life in Ukraine.
What did the days leading up to 15 April 2024 show about the pressures on Ukraine's public institutions? The reports from 10 to 13 April point to a campaign aimed at energy systems and cities, with civilians bearing much of the cost.
Strikes on cities
On 10 April 2024, a Russian missile strike in Odesa killed four people and injured seven others. The next day, 11 April, at least four people were killed and five injured in a Russian missile strike in Mykolaiv.
Pressure on the power system
Also on 11 April, Russia launched missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, damaging power facilities and causing widespread outages for about 200,000 people. Ukraine said the Trypilska thermal power plant in Kyiv Oblast had been destroyed in an overnight attack.
On 12 April, drone strikes again hit several regions. Critical infrastructure was damaged in Kherson Oblast, and a fire at the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station in Zaporizhzhia caused around half a tonne of oil products to leak into the Dnieper river.
On the front line and beyond
On 13 April, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that Russian troops had captured the village of Pervomaiske near Donetsk. Separately, on 12 April, Russia test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Kapustin Yar launch complex in Astrakhan Oblast.
Why it matters for governance
Taken together, the reports from those days show the practical demands on Ukraine's authorities: restoring electricity to affected households, responding to damage to critical infrastructure, dealing with an environmental leak in a major river, and supporting residents of cities that had been struck. These are the everyday tasks of public administration, carried out under fire.
Looking back from 2026, the days before 15 April 2024 stand as a snapshot of a country in which the resilience of utilities and local services was tested repeatedly in the space of a few days.
