Kherson Under Drone Attack: How a City Survives in the Shadow of War

Anmerkungen

This episode was made with the help of AI.

Kherson is one of the most dangerous cities in Ukraine. Since its liberation in the fall of 2022, the city has faced almost daily attacks from Russian-occupied territory across the Dnipro River. Today, the greatest threat comes from drones that target buses, first responders, and civilians going about their everyday lives.

FUNKE war reporter Jan Jessen traveled to Kherson to meet the people living and working under this constant threat. Maksym has been a bus driver for 17 years. Today, he wears body armor and a helmet, trained to get his passengers to the nearest shelter during a drone strike. Oleksandra Knyha works in theater and supports local children alongside her family, organizing cultural events and trips to safer regions so kids can just be kids, if only for a short time. Liudmyla Rubanyak has spent nearly every night for three years in a basement shelter with her neighbors. While drones circle overhead, this underground sanctuary has become the only place she can find peace.

This episode is a report on how public transit, cultural work, and community support keep a city alive—and how everyday tasks become life-threatening in times of war.

Featured in this Episode

Jan Jessen – Head of Politics at NRZ and War/Crisis Reporter for FUNKE Media Group
Maksym – Bus Driver in Kherson
Oleksandra Knyha – Theater Maker and Community Helper
Liudmyla Rubanyak – Basement Shelter Resident in Kherson
Oleksandr Prokudin – Governor of the Kherson Oblast

🧭 Chapter Markers

[01] Life in a City Under Drone Attack
Jan Jessen introduces daily life in Kherson—a city where bus drivers must learn to dodge drones.
[02] Maksym and the City’s Buses
A bus driver shares why he keeps driving despite daily dangers, and why residents rely on public transit.
[03] When the Drone Detector Sounds
Maksym describes a drone strike on his bus and explains what drivers must do in a matter of seconds.
[04] Theater and Childhood Under Fire
Oleksandra Knyha discusses keeping cultural work alive and why her organization brings children out of danger zones.
[05] When Night Falls in Kherson
As darkness sets in, residents retreat from their apartments into bomb shelters.
[06] A Night in the Bunker
Liudmyla Rubanyak describes life underground and why a damp basement has become her sanctuary.
[07] How a City Endures
The next morning, the buses run again. Jan reflects: Kherson functions because people carry out everyday tasks that have become life-threatening in war.

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