Kyiv's Military Administration Counts 140 Dead as Residents Sleep Underground

Kyiv's military administration has recorded 140 deaths in the capital during the first eight months of 2026, close to the 172 people killed in all of 2025. With Russia widening its attacks, the city has begun operating as a front-line zone rather than a rear area, and shelters cannot keep pace with the 4 million residents who live there.

Because shelter capacity falls short of demand, subway stations have become sleeping quarters. Around 10 p.m., people lay out mattresses and pitch small tents. Children sleep beside adults, and pets rest next to their owners or with strangers along the station walls.

Halyna, who lives in the Lukyanivka district, said she takes her 5-year-old son Roman to the nearest station most evenings, even when no siren sounds. She described surviving another night as luck. Lukyanivka has been targeted repeatedly during the four years and eight months since the full-scale war began.

The strikes have killed children as well. In September, a Russian drone hit an apartment building in the central Pechersk district, killing 14-year-old Daniel Umanskyj while he was doing homework in his room. A neighbor named Vlad was standing in a hallway with his daughter at the time. He said the delay in their schedule saved their lives, and added that the attackers do not care who they kill. Flowers now sit in front of the damaged building.

Schools have been struck too. In early October, a drone hit a school in southwestern Kyiv, though pupils and teachers were already in shelters. Principal Valentyna Chorna said the school has kept grades one through nine learning in person because its shelter can hold more than 500 students. Whether classes proceed depends on shelter capacity and the length of any siren. If an alarm sounds in the morning while children are still at home, they may miss school.

Strikes on warehouses have emptied supermarket shelves at levels not seen since the war's early months. Emergency power outages resumed at the end of September, and a Russian attack disabled the subway. With energy infrastructure under fire, the city has not confirmed how it will deliver heat, electricity and water through winter.

The Kyiv International Institute of Sociology reported in early October that 72% of residents surveyed in September said they were prepared to endure the war as long as required. Authorities have shortened the curfew to run from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., and some facilities may operate during yellow alerts. During red alerts, which can signal ballistic missiles, cruise missiles or large combined attacks, residents must take shelter immediately.