Reporter Films Shocking Escape From Drone Strike In Donetsk

RFE/RL correspondent Serhiy Horbatenko set out to document a civilian evacuation near Lyman in Ukraine’s Donetsk region. It was supposed to be another day on the front line. Tough, risky, but familiar. Instead, he ended up filming his own near escape when a Russian FPV drone slammed into the team’s vehicle.

Horbatenko was riding with a volunteer evacuation crew that included an American chaplain working with the Plain Compassion Crisis Response group. Their vehicle was clearly marked for humanitarian work and carried no weapons. Still, the Russian drone dove in at speed and hit the side of the vehicle with a sharp explosion that rattled the camera and threw debris in all directions.

The blast set the vehicle on fire almost instantly. Flames spread fast, eating through the cabin until the entire van burned down to a bare frame. The video shows the team scrambling out, coughing through smoke, trying to process what happened as the fire grew behind them.

Despite the shock, Horbatenko kept recording. His voice is steady, but the ringing in his ears is clear. He later said he only suffered minor injuries thanks to his helmet and protective vest. The same cannot be said for the driver.

The American chaplain took shrapnel to the face but remained conscious and alert as the team rushed him to safety.

FPV Drones Keep Targeting Civilian Missions

The attack fits a growing pattern in the region. Russian forces continue to use FPV drones to hit soft targets like evacuation teams, aid groups, and supply vehicles. These drones are small, fast, cheap, and flown manually using live video feeds. They can maneuver around cover, chase moving vehicles, and hit with surprising accuracy.

Donetsk is one of the most active battlegrounds in the war, and Lyman sits close to contested areas where these drone strikes happen almost daily. Volunteers operate knowing each mission could be their last. Even clearly marked civilian vehicles offer little protection. The drones do not care if you are driving a family out of danger or delivering medical supplies. If it moves, it can be targeted.

Horbatenko has spent years covering the region for RFE/RL and Donbas Realii. He knows the risks. He has worked through artillery fire, close calls, and sudden attacks. But FPV drones are changing the battlefield into something even more unpredictable. They close the gap fast and leave almost no time to react.

An Angry Rusian Drone

Riding in a clearly marked humanitarian van in an active war zone sounds risky enough. Add in FPV drones that can drop out of the sky like angry wasps and you get a recipe for pure danger. You can wear a helmet, a vest, and maybe even carry a lucky charm, but none of that will stop a guided explosive buzzing straight at your window.

The sad part is how routine these attacks are becoming. Teams that try to help civilians now spend as much time checking the sky as they do checking maps. The sound of a small engine overhead used to mean a kid on a dirt bike. Now it sends everyone diving into ditches. And when you are evacuating elderly people or wounded civilians, diving is not always an option.

Horbatenko’s video captures that strange mix of shock and resignation. You can hear someone say they “expected this sooner or later.” It is dark humor, sure, but it is also the reality for those working in Donetsk. They joke because the alternative is thinking too much about the danger around them.

The attack near Lyman burned a vehicle, injured a volunteer, and nearly claimed a reporter. It will not be the last strike of its kind. But the footage is a sharp reminder of what daily life looks like for those trying to save others under constant threat from the sky.

DroneXL’s Take

FPV drones are shaping this war in a way few people outside Ukraine fully understand. They hit fast. They hit accurately. And they hit anyone. Horbatenko’s footage is powerful because it strips away all the distance between viewers and the reality on the ground. Humanitarian teams are doing brave work in brutal conditions, and these drone attacks show no sign of slowing. This was a lucky escape. Many others never get that chance.

Photo credit: Radio Free Europe