The Druzhkivka Hospital is suspending operations due to the threat of shelling
The City Commission on Technogenic and Environmental Safety and Emergency Situations adopted a resolution to that effect on August 24. The hospital must cease operations by September 7, 2026. The Druzhkivka City Military Administration explained that, given the constant threat of shelling, the safety of the people remains the top priority.
The decision to suspend operations at the Central City Clinical Hospital was adopted during an extraordinary meeting of the city commission on August 24. This was reported by the Druzhkivka City Military Administration.
The reason was the deteriorating security situation in the Druzhkivka community. Due to Russian shelling, it has become dangerous for hospital staff and visitors to remain on the premises. The meeting minutes state that there is a threat to the lives and health of people on the medical facility’s grounds. That is why the commission decided to suspend the facility’s medical operations. “In order to protect the lives and health of the facility’s employees and visitors, it has been decided to suspend the medical operations of the Druzhkivka City Council’s Municipal Non-Profit Enterprise ‘Central City Clinical Hospital,’” the commission’s decision states.
The hospital must cease operations by September 7, 2026. Consequently, the medical facility will no longer be able to operate as usual while the city and community remain under constant threat of Russian attacks. The Druzhkivka Military Administration emphasized that the situation in the community remains extremely difficult. “The security situation in the Druzhkivka community remains extremely difficult. Under such conditions, the priority is to protect people’s lives and health,” the military administration stated.
Druzhkivka is located in Donetsk Oblast, which has been regularly subjected to Russian strikes throughout the full-scale war. Due to the proximity of hostilities and constant shelling, the community’s civilian infrastructure operates under significant risk. The hospital’s closure is yet another consequence of the deteriorating security situation in the region. For people remaining in communities near the front lines, this means additional difficulties in accessing medical care.
A similar situation has arisen in another city in Donetsk Oblast. In Sloviansk, the region’s only maternity hospital—which had continued to admit patients until the very end—has ceased operations. Due to Russian shelling, medical facilities in Donetsk Oblast are forced to either limit their operations or shut down completely if it becomes too dangerous for people to remain there. Under these conditions, local authorities are prioritizing the safety of medical personnel and civilians. This was reported by the Druzhkivka City Military Administration.
As a reminder, on August 23, Russian forces attacked a train station in the Kharkiv region with a drone while a passenger train evacuating people was stopped. Two women were killed in the strike, and five others were injured.
On August 23, Russian terrorist forces attacked Ukraine’s railway infrastructure five times. One person was killed and four others were injured as a result of the strikes.
On August 23, Russian forces attacked the locomotive of passenger train No. 147, traveling from Zhytomyr to Odesa, with a rocket-powered drone. The train was stopped and passengers evacuated before the strike, so neither passengers nor railway workers were harmed.
