Russian missile fragments shatter Kyiv church windows
The shockwave from an explosion caused by a Russian missile or its fragments destroyed the stained glass windows above the main entrance of the Roman Catholic Church of St. Nicholas in Kyiv, reported the church's parish priest, Fr. Pavlo Vyshkovsky.
"The glass from the stained glass windows was shattered. We are assessing the damage at the moment, but it's good that no one was hurt since the explosion occurred during the celebration of Rorate masses," said the priest.
Damaged stained glass and windows
Besides the stained glass, the windows in both side towers of the church were damaged. Representatives from the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, which formally owns the building, came to the scene. Firefighters are also expected to assess the damage.
Fr. Vyshkovsky explained that during the morning mass, attended by about 20 faithful, everyone was in the chapel in the church's basement. "This is our shelter. The school located nearby also uses it; students come here during alarms," he emphasized.
Attack on Kyiv. Moscow launched Kinzhals
As a result of the explosion, the business center opposite the church and the hotel behind it suffered the most damage. Fragments fell on rooftops and also destroyed cars parked on the street. Some of them caught fire. Fire department crews are still working on-site, and residents are clearing glass off the sidewalks.
The Church of St. Nicholas is a neo-Gothic Roman Catholic temple located in the center of Kyiv at 75 Velyka Vasylkivska Street. The building was constructed between 1899 and 1909 based on a design by Wladyslaw Horodecki. The church served Kyiv's Catholic community until 1936, when the Soviet authorities closed it and repurposed it for economic uses.
In September 2021, a fire seriously damaged the church, destroying, among other things, historic organs, chandeliers, and some liturgical furnishings. In November of the same year, the parish of St. Nicholas reached an agreement with Ukraine's Ministry of Culture and Information Policy for the church's reconstruction. According to the agreement, the church was to be handed over to the local Catholic parish on June 1, 2022.
On that day, the Ukrainian minister of culture, during a visit to the temple, confirmed that "it will be returned to the faithful." However, this has not been realized to this day.
Russian attack on Kyiv
In the morning attack on Kyiv, Russian forces used Kh-47M2 Kinzhal aeroballistic missiles launched from MiG-31K aircraft and Iskander/KN-23 ballistic missiles. As a result of the attack, one person died, and nine were injured. Debris from the intercepted missiles fell on buildings and cars in three districts, causing fires there.
