A missile strike on 23 July 2023 took out half the roof and punched through the dome of a cathedral inside the UNESCO World Heritage site. Phase I made the building watertight. Phase II closes the dome and returns the light.

In the early hours of 23 July 2023 a cruise missile hit the centre of Odesa. The blast took the roof off the Transfiguration Cathedral, collapsed part of the ceiling and destroyed the marble altar canopy. Fragments of the dome landed in the nave.

Emergency works — supported by UNESCO and the Italian government — stabilised the shell and closed the building to weather by late 2024. What remains is the slow work: the dome shell, the lantern, 46 windows and the interior plaster that holds the acoustics of the space.

Svitlo is funding Phase II with the parish and the Odesa diocese: a documented, photographed reconstruction that keeps the original neoclassical profile and uses lime mortars matched to the 19th-century fabric.

Scope of works

• Dome shell and lantern reconstruction
• 46 windows: frames, glazing, storm protection
• 1,840 m² of roof membrane and drainage
• Interior lime plaster and acoustic surfaces

No original drawing survives for this building. A measured survey is commissioned before works start; drawings are released after the heritage authority signs them off. See the drawings archive.

Timeline

1. Jul 2023

   Missile strike destroys the roof and dome canopy.

2. Oct 2024

   Emergency works completed with UNESCO and Italian support.

3. Apr 2026

   Svitlo commissions the condition survey and Phase II design.

4. Sep 2026

   Scaffolding erected; dome shell works begin.

Accountability

Damage

23 July 2023, missile strike

Built

1795–1808; rebuilt 2000–2005

Heritage status

UNESCO World Heritage, Historic Centre of Odesa

Phase I

Emergency roof and stabilisation, completed October 2024

Phase II scope

Dome shell, lantern, 46 windows, 1,840 m² roof

The condition survey, procurement record and completion certificates are available on request. Write to hello@svitlo.fund.