42 bodies recovered from school hit by Russian bombs in Komyshuvakha

The bodies of 42 people have been recovered from a school destroyed by a Russian strike in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, police reported on 5 November. Search and rescue operations were in their fourth day, with another 33 people possibly still trapped beneath the rubble at the site.

Zaporizhzhia Oblast Police said teams were continuing to search the ruined school, which had been serving as a distribution point for humanitarian aid. The latest figure followed successive increases in the reported death toll since the attack on the morning of 2 November. The number of bodies recovered had reached 42 as the search continued.

Specialists from the Missing Persons Search Centre are working to establish the identities of those recovered. Many of the bodies cannot be identified by appearance, police said. Relatives are providing biological samples so experts can build DNA profiles and carry out comparative forensic examinations to help identify the dead.

The school was hit during a large-scale Russian attack on Komyshuvakha involving guided aerial bombs. Russian forces dropped at least nine bombs on the school, including FAB-3000 bombs weighing three tonnes. The building was being used to distribute humanitarian assistance when it was targeted on 2 November.

Emergency personnel reached the scene after the initial strike, but Russian forces then attacked again. Civilians were among those killed, along with four police officers and two rescue workers. The casualties included both residents and members of the emergency services who had responded to the attack.

By the morning of 4 November, the reported number of people killed had reached 37. That figure was announced by Mykhailo Semikin, the acting head of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast Military Administration, as operations at the destroyed school continued two days after the bombing.

Later on 4 November, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy put the death toll at 40 and said more than 30 residents remained trapped beneath the debris. The police update on 5 November raised the number of recovered bodies to 42 and said 33 more people might still be under the rubble. Search efforts and the forensic identification process were both continuing.