Sumy

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the purpose of the offensive on Kursk region is to create a buffer zone. Earlier, he explained the operation as necessary to protect the population of Sumy from Russian attacks.

Hot weather is expected in Ukraine on August 18, with temperatures reaching 35-36° in the south. In some places, there may be short-term rains and thunderstorms, especially in the western and central regions.

An aid headquarters is set up in Sumy after a rocket attack on a residential area. Five high-rise buildings, 15 cars and a shopping center were damaged. The center provides advice on how to apply for financial aid.

An explosion was heard in Sumy. The Air Force warned of a ballistic missile threat and urged people to take shelter in areas where an alert was issued.

Consumers in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya and Sumy regions were left without electricity as a result of hostile attacks. Damage to gas pipelines left more than a thousand customers in four regions without gas.

At night and in the morning, Russian troops fired 18 times at the border areas of Sumy region. Forty-one explosions were recorded, one civilian was injured, and buildings and cars were damaged.

Heat is expected to reach 35-36° in Ukraine, especially in the south and Kirovohrad region. Short-term rains and thunderstorms are forecast in the western regions and Vinnytsia region, with fog possible in the Carpathians.

Two people were injured in a Russian strike on civilian infrastructure in Sumy. Rescue services are working at the scene and searching for possible victims.

A morning air strike on Sumy set 10 civilian cars on fire in a parking lot near residential buildings. The blast wave smashed windows and damaged the facades of the buildings, and rescuers extinguished the fire.

Ukraine's air defense forces shot down 14 Shahed attack drones launched by Russia at night. Air defense was active in six regions, and an Iskander-K cruise missile was intercepted.

In Sumy, after an enemy attack, a hit was recorded in the area of Svobody Avenue. Windows were damaged, cars are burning, the search for victims continues, and one person was provided with medical aid.

During the day, Russian troops fired 48 times at the border areas of Sumy region. There were 161 explosions in different communities, including air strikes, artillery and mortar attacks.

Minister Klymenko informed about the formation of humanitarian aid for civilians in the area of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operation in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation. About 150 food packages have already been prepared for delivery through the military.

An explosion was reported in Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovs'k region. The Air Force warned of a missile threat in Poltava, Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia regions.

In the city of Sumy, air defense activity was recorded. Drozdenko reported on Telegram that the explosion heard by local residents was the result of air defense operations.

The head of the Donetsk RMA spoke about the restoration of fortifications destroyed by the enemy and the construction of new ones. Since the beginning of the war, more than 600 platoon strongholds have been built in Donetsk Oblast, and about UAH 2.6 billion has been spent.

Another explosion occurred in Sumy, and an air raid alert was issued. During the day, Russians fired 56 times at Sumy region, killing one person and wounding three. More than 60% of the population was evacuated from the border communities.

Starting August 17, the southern and southwestern regions of Ukraine are expected to experience a heat wave of up to +37°. The hot weather may last until August 21-22, but it will not be completely dry.

Two explosions were heard in the city of Sumy. Detailed information on the causes and consequences of the explosions is currently unavailable.

Explosions were reported in Sumy and Dnipro. An air alert was declared in Kyiv and a number of regions due to the threat of ballistic missile attacks, as warned by the Ukrainian Air Force.

Explosions were heard in Sumy, probably outside the city. The Ukrainian Air Force warned of tactical aircraft launching guided bombs in Sumy region, and an air alert was declared.

There were 144 combat engagements in the frontline, almost a third of them in the Pokrovsk sector. The enemy launched 7 missile and 74 air strikes, dropping 101 drones. Defense forces are repelling the attacks.

The sound of an explosion was heard in Sumy. The Air Force warned of a threat of ballistic missile attacks from the northeast, and the authorities have not yet commented on the situation.

Ukraine is considering a humanitarian corridor from Kursk region to Sumy. A corridor towards Russia is possible subject to an official request from the Russian side, which has not yet been received, Vereshchuk said.

In Ukraine, on August 16-18, heat is forecast to reach +37° in the southern and central regions. In the west and north, short-term rains with thunderstorms are possible, while in other regions it will be mostly without precipitation.

The sound of an explosion is heard in Sumy. Before that, an air alert was declared in several regions of Ukraine and Kyiv due to the threat of ballistic missiles.

An air alert has been declared in Kyiv and a number of regions in the north, center and east. The KCMA warns of the threat of ballistic missile attacks and calls for people to take cover.

Russia has intensified the construction of fortification structures near the Ukrainian border, in the Chernihiv, Sumy and Kharkiv regions. This was reported by the spokesman of the State Border Guard Service, Andrii Demchenko.

Over the course of the day, there were 165 combat clashes, the most on the Pokrovsk direction - 58. The enemy carried out 5 missile and 58 air strikes, conducted 4,365 shellings, including 135 from MLRS.

During the night, Ukrainian defense forces shot down all 29 Shahed attack drones launched by Russia. There was also a hostile attack of 3 guided air-to-surface missiles X-59 launched from the Kursk region of the Russian Federation.