‘Environmental catastrophe’ feared as Russia targets Ukraine’s fuel facilities

A refugee fleeing the conflict from neighbouring Ukraine holds her baby as she sits in a tent at the Romanian-Ukrainian border, in Siret, Romania (Andreea Alexandru/AP)

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office has said Russian forces have blown up a gas pipeline in Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city.

The State Service of Special Communication and Information Protection warned that the explosion, which it said looked like a mushroom cloud, could cause an “environmental catastrophe” and advised residents to cover their windows with damp cloth or gauze and to drink plenty of fluids.