Mr. Zelensky criticized Kiev officials

Ukraine's president has criticised officials in Kiev and other cities for being "negligent" after three people died when a bomb shelter failed to open in time.

Three people were killed on June 1 by rocket fragments outside a shelter in the Desnyansky district, northeast of the capital Kiev, including a 9-year-old girl and her mother. The husband of the other victim said the shelter door was closed after the alarm sounded, despite people knocking on the door for a long time.

"The very specific task of local authorities is to ensure that shelters are ready and accessible to the population at all times. It is heartbreaking to see the negligence in carrying out this task and the casualties involved," President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 2.

Mr Zelensky did not name Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko or other local officials in his criticism. However, Mr Zelensky said that Kiev city officials were to some extent responsible for people being unable to get into bomb shelters.

Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko (second from left) at the scene of a missile crash that killed three people on June 1. Photo: Guardian — Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko (second from left) at the scene of a missile crash that killed three people on June 1. Photo: *Guardian*

After Mr. Zelensky's statement, Mayor Klitschko replied that "this is a joint and fair responsibility between the parties," and said that the President of Ukraine directly appointed district-level officials in the capital Kiev. Nine out of 10 of these people belong to Mr. Zelensky's Servant of the People party.

Mayor Klitschko said Kiev authorities would investigate the deaths of three people outside a bomb shelter. He said police would patrol to ensure Kiev's bomb shelters remained open, and complained that funding for the facilities would run out by the end of June.

Colonel Serhiy Popko, a spokesman for the Kiev military, said some people may have entered the bomb shelter before the three victims. "The National Emergency Service staff said that after the explosion, rescuers brought some people out of the bomb shelter. Some people may have arrived earlier," said Colonel Popko.

Russia has recently stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian military and air defense positions in Kiev with missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at night. Most of the airstrikes over the past week have not caused civilian casualties in Kiev, although they have caused some material damage.