Three-year-old girl critically wounded in Russian strike on Kherson playground, father killed
A three-year-old girl and her mother are in critical condition after a Russian strike on a playground in Kherson on May 27, which killed the father of the family. The girl underwent surgery to remove shrapnel from her head in Mykolaiv, while her six-year-old sister is in moderate condition after an operation. Local authorities urged families in dangerous areas to evacuate.
Russian forces struck a children's playground in the Korabelnyi district in Kherson on 27 May, killing the father of a family and critically wounding his wife and two young daughters, local authorities said.
The three-year-old girl sustained a severe blast injury and multiple wounds all over her body. Doctors operated on her in Mykolaiv to remove shrapnel from her head and are now trying to stabilise her condition for transfer to Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv, according to Oleksandr Prokudin, Head of Kherson Oblast Military Administration.
Her six-year-old sister is being treated at Kherson Oblast Children's Hospital and has undergone an operation. Doctors assessed her condition as moderate and say her life is not in danger.
The mother is suffering from concussion, shrapnel wounds to her arms, legs and abdomen, blast injuries and closed head injuries. She is in serious condition.
The couple have two other children, an adult daughter and a son under 18, who are being cared for by social services. Local volunteer Andrii Pietukhov launched a fundraiser to support the family.
Prokudin urged families in dangerous areas to evacuate. "I urge families who are still living in dangerous hromadas to evacuate. Don't put yourselves and your loved ones in mortal danger. We are ready to help you with both evacuation and settling in a new place," he said in a Facebook post.
The attack on 27 May was the latest in a series of Russian strikes on Kherson. On 22 May, shelling injured three civilians in the city, and on the same day as the playground attack, Russian attacks in the Kherson region killed one person and injured 17 others.