Nearly 30 cultural monuments damaged in Odesa by Russian strike - ministry

As a result of Russia’s latest missile and drone strike, the premises of the Odesa National Academic Opera and Ballet Theater and about 30 monuments of cultural heritage sustained damage.

That’s according to the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.

"As a result of the Russian missile attack on the night of August 14, about 10 blocks of historical buildings in Odesa’s Central Historical Area were damaged. In particular, the production buildings of the Odesa National Academic Opera and Ballet Theater were affected," the report reads.

As a result of the inspection of the facility’s technical condition, the Commission established that cracks appeared on the brick structures by the windows as a result of the Russian shelling and that the external plaster decoration of the facade went loose. In some rooms, the blast wave shattered the windows and damaged the frames. At the same time, concrete and load-bearing elements of the building saw no significant destruction.

It is noted that the commission drew up an appropriate report on the object's damage, forwarding it to the National Police. Currently, criminal proceedings are set to be initiated.

In addition, about 30 monuments of cultural heritage were destroyed in Odesa (mainly this is about shattered windows, destroyed interior and exterior decorations, and mutilated frames).

Among the architectural monuments in question are the dormitory of the Odesa College of Arts, the Museum of Ukrainian Books of the Odesa Universal Scientific Library, and five educational premises that are part of the Pedagogical University.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Russian Kalibr cruise missiles and kamikaze drones attacked Odesa in three waves overnight Monday.