Russian strikes kill 3 in Sumy Oblast, reroute trains
Russian forces launched a barrage of drones and guided bombs at Ukraine's Sumy Oblast overnight into Thursday, killing three men and prompting rail operators to divert multiple passenger trains, regional governor Oleg Hryhorov reported.
Hryhorov said the attacks targeted several rural territorial communities with dozens of strike drones and guided aviation bombs. Ukrainian defenses downed some drones, but Russian troops pressed on with further assaults on Stepanivka, Sumy, Bilopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Komyshany and Mykolaivka communities.
The strikes killed a 40-year-old man in Mykolaivka, a 65-year-old in Velyka Pysarivka and a 66-year-old in Bilopillia. A 47-year-old resident of Stepanivka and a 52-year-old from the Sumy community were wounded and receiving medical aid, Hryhorov said. Civilian infrastructure sustained damage.
Due to ongoing Russian threats, trains to and from Sumy are running detour routes, the regional administration announced. Regional services affected include No. 895 Konotop-Fastiv, 888/887 Slavutych-Kyiv-Volynskyi and 892 Fastiv-Slavutych.
Suburban trains terminate at Nosivka station.
Long-distance lines rerouted include 787 Tereshchenska-Kyiv, 786 Kyiv-Tereshchenska, 113 Kharkiv-Lviv, 779 Sumy-Kyiv, 116 Kyiv-Sumy and 774 Zhmerynka-Tereshchenska.
Prior attacks on Sumy Oblast rail
On October 4, Russian forces shelled the Shostka community, striking the railway station in a "double-tap" tactic: the first hit a locomotive on the Tereshchenska-Novhorod-Siverskyi suburban train. As evacuation began, a second strike targeted an electric locomotive on the Kyiv-Shostka route.
Public broadcaster Suspilne, citing Shostka District Military Administration head, reported about 30 people injured. Prosecutors said eight were hospitalized, including a Ukrzaliznytsia worker (a suburban train cashier). A 71-year-old man was killed.
The Shostka strikes damaged power lines, water supply and gas systems.