Epicentr infrastructure damage
Russian attacks hit four Epicentr hypermarkets in Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, and Poltava between October 24 and October 25. Epicentr, which is one of Ukraine’s largest home improvement and retail chains, described these strikes in a Facebook post as amounting to "total destruction of the network." I find the concentration of these attacks on civilian infrastructure heavy, as the company’s facilities are among the targets. The Poltava Oblast Military Administration reported that a 52-year-old woman sustained injuries during an attack on a hypermarket on October 25, while other reports noted that one of the injured victims is an 11-year-old girl. The company has not provided any details regarding the extent of the damage or when the destroyed locations might reopen. Before the full-scale invasion in February 2022, the company founded in 2003 operated 72 hypermarkets across Ukraine. Since the war began, ten of its shopping centers were completely destroyed and 13 others were damaged, according to information the company gave Ekonomichna Pravda in August 2026. Yuliia Chudnovets, the head of public relations for Epicentr, noted on October 22 that Russian forces struck five company sites, including one in Kyiv, in the 48 hours before that date.
| Epicentr Strike Details | Data |
|---|---|
| Cities hit Oct 24-25 | Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Vinnytsia, Poltava |
| Total destroyed since 2022 | 10 shopping centers |
| Total damaged since 2022 | 13 shopping centers |
Drone strikes and casualties
The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russia launched 153 Shahed-type drones overnight on October 25, including 92 jet-powered drones and low-cost Banderol cruise missiles, alongside the attacks targeting Vinnytsia. I see the breadth of these strikes in the reports that Ukraine also struck a petrochemical plant and a warehouse in Siberia, located approximately 2,500 kilometers from the border, on October 24. Five wounded individuals are receiving treatment. Two people in serious condition are undergoing surgery. Russian forces suffered 1,850 casualties. Mediazona added 6,880 names to its list of the dead in early October. Governor Dmitry Makhonin said 11 drones were downed during a Ukrainian attack on his region around 11 a.m. local time. These strikes occurred alongside the aerial combat reported by the Ukrainian Air Force.
