140 Dead in Kyiv in Eight Months

Fourteen people died in the first eight months of 2026.

That is a mistake in the source text. The Kyiv military administration states that 140 people were killed in the capital during that period.

The figure surpasses the 172 deaths recorded for the entire year of 2025. If the current pace continues, 2026 will be the deadliest year for the city since the full-scale invasion started in 2022.

City officials say the strain is visible in the metro system. There are not enough shelters for the 4 million residents. As a result, subway stations have become sleeping quarters.

Residents lay out mattresses and small tents starting around 10 p.m. every night. Children sleep beside adults, and pets rest against cold walls. Halyna, a resident of the Lukyanivka district, takes her 5-year-old son, Roman, to the nearest station most evenings. She does this even when no siren sounds. She told the press that they are alive and have been lucky again.

Russian attacks have also hit residential areas where children live. In September, a drone struck an apartment building in the central Pechersk district. Daniel Umanskyj, 14, was doing homework in his room when the impact occurred. Vlad, a neighbor, was in the hallway with his daughter. He said they were late that day, which saved their lives. He called the attackers "sick monsters" who do not care who they kill. Flowers now mark the site where Daniel died.

Schools are also targets. A drone hit a building in southwestern Kyiv in early October. Principal Valentyna Chorna said the students and teachers were already in shelter at the time. The school continues in-person classes for grades one through nine because its shelter holds more than 500 students. Whether lessons happen depends on how long the sirens last and if shelter space is available.

Parents face difficult choices. A colleague at a news bureau in Kyiv described the stress of working while a child stays home. Her daughter attends school near the Antonov aircraft factory. The walk to school is risky because alerts can start at any moment. A drone struck their building in September, but the apartment was undamaged and her daughter was at school.

Supply chains are under pressure. Strikes on warehouses have caused supermarket shortages not seen since the early days of the war. Emergency power outages returned at the end of September. One attack paralyzed the subway system. City leaders are unsure how to provide reliable heat, electricity, and water this winter.

Residents remain determined. A survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology in early October found that 72% of residents said they were ready to endure the war as long as necessary in September. Authorities have shortened the curfew to 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. Some facilities operate during yellow alerts. People must shelter immediately during red alerts, which indicate ballistic or cruise missile threats or large combined attacks.