A UKRAINIAN mum and her daughter were killed in front of their relatives as Russian forces unleashed another brutal blitz on Kyiv.
Olha Ivashko, 33, and her daughter Vika, 9, were among the three victims of a fresh aerial bombardment on the capital on Thursday.
The little girl's grandparents, Petro and his wife Natalia, horrifically found their bodies as they frantically searched for them.
The grandad explained they had bolted up as a deafening explosion rocked their fourth-floor apartment, knowing Olha would have rushed to the bomb shelter.
Vladimir Putin sent ten Iskander ballistic missiles barrelling towards Kyiv, which Ukraine claim to have downed with air defence systems.
This family of missiles are designed to hit targets at relatively close range and are regularly deployed against Nato forces by Russia.
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But debris from one takedown fatefully fell to the ground between a medical clinic and an adjacent residential building.
The grandparents ran outside as rockets rained down on the Desnyanskyi district to confirm that Olha and Vika had reached safety, but could not find them.
"But then we realised we could see their bodies," Petro told The Telegraph.
The remains of Russia's deadly missiles had horrifically struck the mother and daughter as they tried in vain to prise the door of the shelter open.
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Olha, an accountant at a florist, and schoolgirl Vika were found lying just metres apart shortly after the air raid siren rang out.
Petro was heart-wrenchingly pictured hunched over his grandaughter's body that was next to the wall of the local children’s medical clinic.
Gran Natalia was also seen being propped up by emergency services as she sobbed when she saw her lifeless daughter-in-law nearby.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said the images proved "this is a war between the forces of good and absolute evil."
The couple were extremely close to the pair following the death of their son, Olha’s husband, who died less than two years ago,
Devastated Petro told how he had been having fun with Vika less than 24 hours before she died, dressing her up in his old military uniform.
"I just hope people around the world see what’s happening, and hope that’s going to stop him (Vladimir Putin),” Petro sobbed.
He described Natalia as a "real golden lady" while sitting in his apartment littered with pictures of the family together.
A criminal investigation has now been launched by officials in the wake of their deaths amid reports people refused to open the shelter they had rushed towards.
I just hope people around the world see what’s happening, and hope that’s going to stop him.
Residents in the Desnyanskyi district claimed dozens of people were locked out of the bunker.
Natalia Riabchuk, 33, also died, while mayor Vitaly Klitschko confirmed that over a dozen people had been wounded in the shelling.
Her husband Yaroslav Ryabchuk claimed their relentless banging on the door was ignored by the shelter officials already inside.
"Every one of these people would be alive if only the security guard had opened the door," he told The Telegraph.
Yaroslav said they had run to the shelter with their daughter Polina, 11, but reportedly discovered the door was already locked tight.
He took his child as he ran to find the security guard just moments before the missile hit, only to return to find his wife covered in rubble.
The bombardment marked the 18th deadly attack on Kyiv this month alone – and is the highest casualty toll so far.
Buildings bore the brunt of the damage, with an apartment block, a kindergarten, three schools and a medical clinic being hit.
Teams of rescuers were pictured tending to the injured surrounded by rubble and debris.
A water pipeline and numerous cars were also destroyed as explosions rang out across the capital in the early hours of Thursday.
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The remains of a missile fell on a children's hospital and a multistory building in the Desnianskyi District, while two schools and a police department were also damaged.
In the Dniprovskyi District, burning debris landed on a residential building causing a plume of thick smoke to engulf the area.
The blast wave blew out the windows, parked cars caught fire, and debris fell onto the roadway and courtyards.
Kyiv residents have been urged to take heed of warning sirens and stay in shelters as Russia amps up its bombardment.
Putin has been ploughing Ukraine with fearsome kamikaze drones as well as cruise and ballistic missiles in recent weeks.
Experts believe Moscow is heavily targeting Kyiv to deplete its supplies ahead of a long-expected counter-offensive by Ukraine.
Russia followed up Thursday's attack with another offensive last night, launching 15 cruise missiles and 18 Shahed drones at Kyiv.
Ukraine's air defence said they had neutralised all of the threats and reportedly hit back by targeting Russia's western Smolensk region.
The towns of Divasy and Peresna were hit as two long-range drones attacked fuel and energy infrastructure, but no injuries or fires were reported.
The region's acting governor said they struck some 168 miles from the Ukrainian border, but did not say who was responsible.
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Kyiv was also accused of shelling the border town of Shebekino on Thursday, setting a dormitory alight and damaging an administrative building.
But Ukraine has vehemently denied it is responsible for attacks within Russian territory.
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