Loud music during air-raid alarms and drone threats: a woman from Mykolaiv complained about a café operating in the city center

A resident of Mykolaiv contacted the Contact Center at Mykolaiv City Council to complain about the operation of catering establishments in the Chestnut Square area. According to her, during air raid alerts and reports of a real threat of Russian strikes, the establishments allegedly continue to hold entertainment events and play loud music.

The author of the appeal, who on Facebook is registered as Olga Olga, claims that this situation repeats in the evenings even when drone flights over the city are recorded. The woman believes that loud music can prevent residents of nearby buildings and passersby from hearing the sound of an approaching drone. In her appeal the resident of Mykolaiv described the situation and called for increased control of establishments during air raid alerts:

“I ask that urgent response measures be taken regarding the operation of catering establishments located in the Chestnut Square area. Every evening during air raid alerts, in periods of a real threat of strikes and UAV flights directly over the city, these establishments blast loud music at full volume and hold entertainment events. This creates increased danger for residents of nearby houses and for passersby. Because of the noise pollution it is impossible to hear in time the hum of a drone motor or other sounds indicating an approaching threat. While city Telegram channels notify about threats and explosions in the city, mass revelry continues in the very center. I consider it unacceptable to ignore safety rules and to hold entertainment events during an air raid alert. I ask the relevant services and law enforcement agencies to carry out explanatory work and strict control to prevent establishments from operating in such a format during a wartime threat for the safety of the city’s residents,” wrote Olga Olga.

The appeal does not specify which establishments are meant, so the names of cafes or restaurants are not given. There is also currently no information provided about the results of any inspection or an official response from the relevant services.

The issue of safety during air attacks remains particularly relevant for Mykolaiv. In early September 2026, city authorities abandoned large-scale events for City Day precisely because of the risk of Russian strikes and the possible gathering of people.

Moreover, during one of the attacks on Mykolaiv the air raid alarm sounded only after the explosions: the mayor explained that this was because Russian “Banderoli” were flying over the river at an extremely low altitude and were not detected in time.

At the same time the rules for business operation during air threats are changing. The government is introducing a division of alerts into “yellow” and “red” levels: under a drone threat some businesses will be able to continue operating provided they meet safety requirements, whereas in the case of a missile or combined threat a shutdown of operations and transition to shelters is envisaged. Therefore the mere fact that an establishment is operating during an alert does not automatically mean a violation — the specific circumstances must be assessed by the responsible services.

Earlier we wrote:

• Parcels will have to wait: “Nova Poshta” will suspend operations even during a “yellow” air raid alert
• Mykolaiv abandoned mass celebrations of City Day due to the threat of Russian attacks
• The alert was turned on after the explosions: “Banderoli” flew over the river at an altitude of up to 2 meters
• Shops will not close for every “Shahed”: the Cabinet is changing the rules for air raid alerts
• Air raid alerts in Ukraine will change: “yellow” for drones, “red” for missiles and ballistic threats