On the 21st of January, 2023, a Russian missile carrying a warhead weighing 2,000 pounds struck a large residential building in the city of Dnipro in Ukraine, resulting in widespread destruction and the loss of many lives. At 3:40 in the afternoon on what seemed to be an otherwise typical Saturday, the building was struck by a missile that was as long as a city bus and moving at a speed more significant than the speed of sound.
When the missile struck, the residents of the apartment complex, which was a massive building constructed during the Soviet era and had been home to an estimated 1,700 people, were going about their daily lives. Two couples were gathered in their kitchens on the fourth floor, where some of the residents were occupying their time by watching TikTok videos while others were attempting to stay warm while the power was out.
The missile’s impact was so devastating that more than thirty apartments were destroyed in an instant by fire, and many others were slashed to pieces with the precision of a surgeon. The number of fatalities eventually reached 46, with six of them being children; another 80 people were injured. Since the beginning of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, this was one of the single attacks that resulted in the highest civilian casualties.
As a result of the force of the missile, many residents found themselves unable to leave their homes because stairwells and other exits had been destroyed. Those who were fortunate enough to survive often did so because of the location of their homes that they were in at the time of the impact.
Residents of Dnipro have been left in a state of shock as a result of the attack, and the conflict that is still going on between Russia and Ukraine continues to cause immense suffering and loss of life. The tragic event at 118 Victory Embankment serves as a sobering reminder of the devastation that can result from war and the binding nature of finding a peaceful way to end the current hostilities.