Russia has intensified its use of small, jet‑powered drones against the Ukrainian capital, keeping Kyiv under an almost continuous air‑raid alert for the third day in a row. The latest wave of attacks coincided with a secondary explosion at a warehouse in the village of Myla, near Bucha, that killed 38 people, most of them residents of a local care home, and left several others missing.

The drone strikes have forced Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi to reconsider the city's curfew rules. Kyiv, which already operates a "commandant's hour" that bans street movement in the evenings, may see the restriction start earlier as the capital endures up to ten alerts in a single day. "We must adapt the functioning of the state to the new conditions," the prime minister said after a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, signalling that authorities will tighten shelter protocols and possibly extend the curfew to protect civilians.

Continuous drone pressure reshapes daily life

Since 27 August, Russian forces have been sending groups of Shahed‑type drones toward Kyiv at irregular intervals, abandoning the earlier pattern of massed waves that arrived simultaneously. The change, described by defence‑ministry adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov as a "new tactic", means that residents can no longer predict when the next alarm will sound.

"All the hundreds of jet‑powered Shahed drones fly to Kyiv along exactly the same route," Beskrestnov wrote on a public forum, attaching a map that shows the flight corridor. He suggested that the drones' modems rely on Belarusian telecommunications infrastructure, which may explain why the flight path remains static despite the shift in timing.

Ukrainian analysts have noted a modest decline in the number of drones reaching the capital after the introduction of new counter‑measures, but warned that Moscow is already tweaking its approach. Bohdan Myroshnykov, a senior analyst, said on Sunday that "fewer Russian jet‑powered drones reached Kyiv yesterday evening and today, in some cases the entire salvo did not get through." He added that the reduction was likely temporary, as Russian forces adapt to Ukrainian air‑defence tactics.

For ordinary citizens, the impact is palpable. A minute‑by‑minute log from the NV website recorded a series of alerts on 31 August that began at 08:45 and continued intermittently until after 13:43, with multiple false alarms and brief periods of calm punctuated by new warnings. The log noted a fire in a warehouse in the Desnianskyi district, later clarified to be in the village of Pohreby, Brovary Raion, and reported six injuries, three of them in serious condition.

In addition to the drone threat, a Russian‑launched strike on a warehouse near Myla triggered a secondary explosion that ripped through an ammunition depot stored in a residential area. The blast devastated the village, destroying homes and a care home that housed dozens of elderly residents.

Tragedy at Myla: illegal ammunition storage under fire

President Zelensky announced on social media that 38 people had died in the Myla explosion, with four more still missing. The death toll includes 27 residents of the local care home, according to journalist Daryna Polishchevska of Hromadske, who counted 27 black body bags in the courtyard of the destroyed facility.

Eyewitnesses described the scene as chaotic. One resident, Zhanna, said that even two days after the blast, ammunition fragments, rockets, shells and cartridges, were still detonating in the streets. "The ammunition is still exploding. It is scattered everywhere," she told reporters.

The incident mirrors a similar tragedy in July, when a depot in Vyshneve, a Kyiv suburb, was hit by a Russian missile. That strike killed seven people, injured 21 and forced the evacuation of more than 600 residents. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko later said the scale of the Vyshneve disaster was compounded by "negligence of specific individuals" who stored munitions in a built‑up area.

Following the Vyshneve incident, authorities arrested representatives of the private arms firm that operated the warehouse. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has now opened an investigation into the Myla depot, and Zelensky has pledged that those responsible will be held accountable. Critics argue, however, that the pattern of storing ammunition near civilian populations persists, putting non‑combatants at risk and potentially violating international humanitarian law.

Front‑line fighting persists in the east

While Kyiv endures a relentless drone barrage, heavy fighting continues on the eastern front. Russian forces are engaged around the towns of Kostiantynivka, Druzhkivka and Dobropillia, where Ukrainian troops report the use of glide‑bombs and drone‑guided artillery.

According to a Russian Telegram channel known as Two Majors, the Russian army is employing FAB glide‑bombs on the Druzhkivka axis, targeting urban infrastructure and logistics hubs. In Dobropillia, the channel claimed that Russian troops are attempting to establish a foothold in the smaller settlement, though local reports suggest limited success.

Ukrainian open‑source analysts at DeepStateUA noted that Russia's bridgehead on the western bank of the Oskil River has shrunk slightly after Ukrainian forces pushed back a two‑square‑kilometre area south of the village of Zapadne. The 23rd Separate Assault Regiment, which includes a contingent of Colombian volunteers, reportedly advanced north of Zapadne last week, further eroding the Russian foothold.

The bridgehead remains strategically important for Moscow, as it serves as a staging ground for potential offensives toward Kupiansk and the broader Kharkiv region. Maintaining pressure on this sector is a priority for Kyiv's eastern command, which seeks to prevent Russia from consolidating supply lines.

Equipment losses on both sides

Data compiled by the Oryx open‑source project shows that, as of 31 August, Russia has lost 24,052 pieces of heavy equipment since the start of the war, with 19,020 destroyed, 1,000 damaged and 1,194 abandoned. Ukrainian forces captured 2,838 of those assets, including 4,443 tanks, of which 3,348 were destroyed in combat.

Ukraine's own losses amount to 12,052 pieces of equipment, with 9,462 destroyed, 697 damaged, 694 abandoned and 1,199 captured by Russian forces. The Ukrainian army has lost 1,460 tanks, 1,121 of which were destroyed in combat.

Both sides continue to publish daily tallies of equipment losses, though the figures cannot be independently verified. The Oryx database relies on photographic evidence, offering a conservative estimate of material attrition.

Implications for civilians and the wider war effort

The relentless drone attacks on Kyiv have forced businesses, schools and public services to operate on a stop‑start basis. Even when alerts are lifted, the lingering threat of another strike discourages commuters from returning to work, undermining productivity and increasing the strain on already stretched public utilities.

Trade unions representing public‑sector workers have warned that the curfew extensions could exacerbate fatigue among healthcare staff, who are already coping with a surge in casualties from both the front lines and civilian incidents like the Myla explosion. The Ukrainian Teachers' Union called for additional compensation for staff forced to stay on standby during air‑raid alerts.

From a European perspective, the situation raises questions about the safety of humanitarian aid deliveries and the protection of civilians under international law. The European Commission has repeatedly urged all parties to respect the principle of distinction, but the repeated storage of ammunition in residential zones challenges that principle.

EU member states that provide military assistance to Kyiv are also monitoring the effectiveness of the new Ukrainian air‑defence measures. The United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Poland have recently supplied additional short‑range air‑defence systems designed to counter low‑altitude drones, while Germany is evaluating the deployment of electronic‑warfare equipment that could jam the control links of the Shahed drones.

Analysts in Brussels note that the shift to a constant, low‑level drone threat could strain Ukraine's already limited air‑defence resources, prompting a re‑assessment of how NATO‑supplied systems are allocated across the front. "If the capital is tied up in a near‑continuous alert, we may need to divert more assets to protect critical infrastructure," said a senior European defence policy adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Looking ahead

Ukrainian officials say they are preparing a set of legislative proposals to formalise the new curfew regime and to tighten regulations on the storage of military materiel in civilian areas. The draft measures could include harsher penalties for private firms that keep ammunition depots near populated zones, as well as stricter oversight by the Ministry of Defence.

International observers, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, have called for an independent investigation into the Myla and Vyshneve incidents, arguing that accountability is essential to prevent further civilian casualties.

On the battlefield, Ukrainian commanders remain focused on pushing back Russian bridgeheads along the Oskil and preventing further incursions into the Kharkiv region. The next few weeks will likely see intensified artillery duels and continued drone activity, with both sides seeking to exploit any tactical advantage.

For Kyiv's residents, the reality is a daily rhythm of sirens, shelter drills and the constant fear that another drone could strike at any moment. The city's resilience, bolstered by a robust civil‑defence network and international support, will be tested as the war enters its third year.