A woman is believed to have been killed in Kyiv while waiting outside a locked air raid shelter – as inspections revealed nearly a quarter of Ukraine’s shelters were locked or unusable.
The interior ministry revealed on Saturday that of the 4,800 it inspected, 252 were locked and 893 were “unfit for use”.
Four people have been held over the woman’s death on Thursday, Kyiv’s prosecutor said, including a security guard who failed to unlock the gates.
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They could face up to eight years in prison.
The 33-year-old’s death came amid a pre-dawn strike on the capital; she was reportedly hit by falling missile fragments as she waited for the locked shelter to open.
The attack also killed a nine-year-old girl, her mother and another woman.
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Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said on Telegram that the city has had “more than a thousand” complaints about locked or unusable shelters within a day of launching a feedback service.
He blamed local officials appointed by the president, who he said are responsible for looking after the shelters.
In response, President Zelenskyy told journalists: “Everyone will be responsible.
“The reaction will be firm… Russia, as the enemy, is not enough for us, we have internal enemies as well.”
Referencing ongoing disagreements with former boxer Mr Klitschko, he added: “I would say this: There may be a knockout.”
The country’s interior ministry said 5,300 volunteers – made up of emergency workers, police officers and local officials – would continue to inspect shelters across Ukraine.
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Elsewhere on Sunday, the body of a two-year-old girl was found under rubble of a house destroyed by shelling in Dnipro, its governor said.
A rocket landed in between two buildings, damaging 10 houses and gas pipelines, said Serhiy Lysak.
Air defence systems downed two cruise missiles and one drone.
Further south along the Dnipro river, artillery damaged three high-rise buildings and power lines in the town of Nikopol, but there were no casualties, said Mr Lysak.
