The air raid siren sounded early in the morning, in the Desnyans'kyi neighborhood in the northeast of Kyiv – the city's most populous district. Shortly after that clinic no. 3 was struck by the falling debris, of a Russian missile taken out by air defense. Unfortunately even as the incoming missile was neutralized, people were killed on the ground.

One witness, Pavel, told ERR's Astrid Kannel that: "There was a very loud explosion. I woke up as a result, quickly got dressed, and ran outside. But everything that was going to happen, had already happened; they didn't reach the shelter, they didn't make it."

Those who did make it to the shelter in any case could not enter, since the man tasked with overseeing the opening of the doors was reportedly inebriated on duty and failed in his task of letting people in, with the result of three deaths as debris rained down.

Another survivor, Ekaterina, said: "It's a good shelter there, yet people just stood here and got hit. That individual who did not open the doors – along with the bosses of the clinic – they must be punished for this. It is rumored he was drunk. Does that excuse what happened? No, it does not."

Of the three fatalities, two were a mother with a child, while many more injuries were inflicted.

Svetlana, another who experienced the episode, told ERR that: "It was horrible, because we had hurried here to get protection. It is supposed to provide a defense, in the hopes that you will survive. Then you realize that there's no such protection anywhere, and that you are on your own. That feeling brings mixture of confusion, fear and despair."

Photos of all Ukrainian children who have perished in Russia's war so far are on display at the historic Moscow Gate. President Alar Karis also paid a visit to the somber exhibition.

The Estonian president said: "I have three children and five grandchildren of my own. Again, tonight, a child was killed in Kyiv. The numbers are constantly rising, and this just has to stop."

Thursday morning's missile strike was the fourth on Kyiv this week. The dead were reportedly an 11-year-old girl, her mother, aged 34, and another woman, aged 33.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!