Power outages hit Russia’s Belgorod as Ukrainian drone attacks escalate

Residents of Russia’s Belgorod region say power outages, air raid sirens and the sound of gunfire aimed at incoming Ukrainian drones are becoming more common as Kiev retaliates for repeated shelling of its cities with cross-border strikes of its own.

“It’s so noisy and so terrifying,” says Nina, a Belgorod resident who asked us to change her name.

“I was returning from the clinic when a siren went off. As usual, I received alerts on Telegram about a drone attack. Then automatic fire broke out, I ran into a nearby yard and tried to hide under an arch,” she recalled.

“The next day, everything happened again – air defense fire, automatic fire, explosions.

The number of Ukrainian drone attacks on the Belgorod region has nearly quadrupled since the start of 2025, according to a Russian BBC News analysis based on data from local authorities.

In September, more than 4,000 Ukrainian drones were registered in the Belgorod region, compared with about 1,100 in January 2025. In one of the largest strikes last month, the region was attacked by more than 260 drones, according to the governor. There has also been an increase in rocket attacks since the summer.

Ukraine continues to suffer far greater losses from Russia’s near-daily missile and drone strikes, which routinely kill civilians and leave cities across the country without electricity and heat.

At least seven people were killed, including two children, in Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities overnight on Wednesday, and there are fears that the coming winter could be Ukraine’s harshest yet.

Ukrainian officials say the recent spate of attacks on Belgorod, some of which have caused massive power outages, is a direct result of Russia’s latest assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

“Maybe they should stop getting too comfortable there in Belgorod?” Zelensky said earlier this month. “They need to understand: if they want to knock us out, we’re going to do the same.”

Belgorod Oblast is a key logistics corridor and deployment center for Russian forces near the border with Ukraine. It is also a regular staging ground for short-range artillery and drone strikes.

Although there were localized power outages in smaller towns in the region earlier in the war, the city of Belgorod was largely unaffected by blackouts until this fall.

Local student Ekaterina (not her real name) told the BBC she was at home in the city on the evening of September 28 when notifications started popping up on her phone: “Missile alert! Take shelter!”

There was a wail of sirens and the lights in her apartment started flashing.

“We ran into the corridor because the explosions started almost immediately. They were very loud. The lights were flashing on and off,” recalls Ekaterina.

Missiles hit the main Belgorod thermal power plant and a substation, local Telegram channels reported.

And while the city center got power back relatively quickly, some in the suburbs remained without power until the morning. Across the region, about 77,000 people, or 5% of the population, were still without electricity the next day.

“While you’re in the office in the center, you don’t necessarily notice that there’s a power cut. But when you go home, it’s like you enter a completely different world,” another Belgorod resident Natalya (not her real name) told the BBC.

“Total darkness outside. The apartment blocks are without power, the shops are also dark. When you’re driving in the dark, you can hardly tell where your stop is – you can’t see anything”.

Another major power outage came less than a week later.

Authorities admit they do not have the capacity to provide everyone with backup generators and have urged residents to buy their own.

“But what should we feed them with given the fuel crisis?” Maria, an elderly resident who also asked to change her name, the BBC reports.

More than half of Russia’s regions, including Belgorod, are affected by gasoline and diesel shortages due to increased Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries.

“And generator prices have also gone up,” says Maria.

Ukraine has ramped up production of its “Darts” drone – light and cheap models that can carry a 4kg (9lb) warhead – and many residents of Belgorod say that’s why the strikes have increased. Drones are effective for both single and mass launches that can potentially overwhelm air defense systems.

But the recent strikes on energy infrastructure that caused the blackout in Belgorod are more likely to involve heavier weapons. Reports say long-range Himars missiles or Morok drones with larger warheads may have been used.

And while for many in Russia the war still seems far away, residents of Belgorod Oblast now feel its impact daily, as do Ukrainians across the border.

“By September, the war seemed to be on the back burner again. But now we get constant reminders – through power cuts, fuel shortages and a general sense of anxiety,” said Yakov, who declined to give his real name.

“I personally have a strong feeling that as the war continues, Russia is rushing headlong into the abyss.”

Additional reporting by Ilya Abishev