Russian drone hits Kherson Art Museum: building virtually destroyed

On the morning of August 20, Russian troops attacked the Kherson Regional Art Museum named after Oleksiy Shovkunenko. The building was hit by a drone.

As a result of the attack, the wreckage of the drone was found at the site. After the explosion, the right wing of the museum building and nearby outbuildings caught fire.

Rescuers extinguished the fire, but they had to work under the threat of new attacks. To reach the sources of smoldering, firefighters had to dismantle the floors between the floors, where the material continued to smolder and periodically re-ignite.

The fire seriously damaged the premises of the right wing of the museum. Furniture and chairs were completely destroyed, the parquet in the corridors was partially burned out. In one of the corridors of the storage room, the fire damaged books.

In addition, the electrical wiring and heating system were completely destroyed as a result of the fire. The museum building was left without electricity.

The Kherson Art Museum is a cultural heritage site and has the international Blue Shield protection mark. The museum stated that a deliberate attack on a cultural heritage site can be considered a war crime under international humanitarian law.