Blackouts Hit Russian-Occupied Parts of Kherson Region as Ukraine Steps Up Pressure on Crimea Axis

Power was fully or partially knocked out across Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine’s southern Kherson region on Friday morning, the Moscow-installed administration said, offering little detail as Kyiv intensifies strikes on occupied territory.

Regional governor Vladimir Saldo confirmed the outages but did not say what caused them. The blackout comes amid a surge in Ukrainian drone attacks targeting occupied infrastructure, particularly in neighboring annexed Crimea, where pressure on the energy grid and transport links has been mounting.

Power disruptions in the Kherson region come as Russia said its air defenses intercepted 660 Ukrainian drones overnight into Friday in one of the largest drone attacks since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion, with strikes reported on the capital, a major chemical plant in the Tula region, and Crimea.

Russian monitoring channels said blasts were heard near the Kerch ferry crossing, with residents reporting smoke and burning.

The Kerch area is one of Russia’s key military logistics hubs, serving as a transport link between Crimea and mainland Russia after repeated attacks on the Kerch Bridge, and the ferry crossing has increasingly been used to move military personnel, equipment, and supplies to Russian forces in southern Ukraine.

Ukrainian forces have increasingly focused on logistics and military assets in the south in an effort to disrupt Russian supply routes to frontline units.

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Sources said Moscow is seeking gasoline imports after Ukrainian “long-range sanctions,” i.e., drone strikes on refineries, significantly reduced domestic fuel production.

On Thursday, Crimea’s Russia-installed governor Sergei Aksyonov said train services would be gradually reduced and children’s summer camps suspended after a series of strikes strained local infrastructure. 

Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014, but Ukraine and most of the international community continue to recognize the peninsula as Ukrainian territory.

Power cuts and strain on infrastructure have increasingly affected southern occupied regions in recent weeks, with Moscow-installed authorities reporting full or partial outages following a surge in Ukrainian drone strikes targeting occupied infrastructure and Crimea-linked logistics.