Russian strike leaves Lviv monastery building uninhabitable after direct drone hit
A building in the 17th-century Bernardine Monastery complex in Lviv (Photo: Facebook / Yevhen Boiko)
A residential building in Lviv’s 17th-century Bernardine
Monastery complex has been declared unsafe and unfit for habitation following
Russia’s March 24 attack, according
to the results of an inspection completed in the city.
The findings were announced by Yevhen Boiko, managing
director of the executive committee of the Lviv City Council.
According to Boiko, St. Andrew’s Church, which is part of
the Bernardine Monastery complex, was barely damaged. “Of the 16 stained-glass
compositions, 4 were shattered and 1 more has minor damage. Most of them were
saved by protective shielding installed in advance,” he said.
The attack also damaged the 1734 bell tower and the archive
building, both part of the complex, where eight windows were blown out. But the
residential building suffered the most damage after a direct hit by a Russian
drone.
“The destruction is enormous: the roof and floors have been
destroyed, the wooden structures were burned out, and the load-bearing walls
were damaged. Inside, there are collapses, stair landings have been destroyed,
some historic elements have been lost, and there are visible traces of a severe
fire. The building is in an emergency condition and unfit for habitation, and
some structures may continue to collapse,” Boiko said.
Workers are now sealing window openings in the church and
bell tower at the site of the Russian attack and removing stained glass. “At
the same time, the Cultural Heritage Protection Office is bringing in experts —
they will assess the damage and prepare a restoration plan,” Boiko added.
Russia’s attack on Ukraine on March 24
Russia launched a mass attack on Ukraine on March 24. Lviv,
Ivano-Frankivsk, Vinnytsia and Ternopil oblasts were among the areas hit. In
Ivano-Frankivsk, a National Guard serviceman and his 15-year-old daughter were
killed in the attack.
In Lviv Oblast, about 32 people were injured. Officials also
reported a strike on a UNESCO World Heritage site, later identified as the
Bernardine Monastery complex. The building that has now been declared unsafe
housed the apartment of Taras Ishchyk, a brand designer for Ukraine’s Armed
Forces, and Ukrainian pianist Marta Kuzii.
According to the Air Force of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, air
defense units shot down or suppressed 541 enemy UAVs during Russia’s mass drone
attack on Ukraine.
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