An accident occurred in the storage facilities of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra: 4,000 museum exhibits are at risk.

An emergency occurred in the storerooms of the National Reserve "Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra", where the state part of the Museum Fund of Ukraine is stored. This was reported by LIGA.net This became known from a letter from the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications, which was obtained by the editorial office.

According to the Ministry of Culture, on February 5, 2026, a water heating system burst in the attic space of building No. 6 of the Reserve, a local architectural monument known as the "Cells of the Clergy." As a result of the accident, the premises on the first and second floors, where museum objects from the "Negatives," "Graphics," and "Painting" groups are stored, were flooded.

In total, about 4,000 exhibits were at risk. The water flow mainly affected the outer surfaces of the storage cabinets, and there was also a localized shedding of plaster without damage to the load-bearing structures.

After the accident, the humidity level reached 90% on the second floor and up to 69% on the first floor, and the air temperature was around +4.5 °C.

"Currently, the Reserve is continuously implementing a set of measures to eliminate the consequences of the emergency situation and stabilize the storage conditions of museum objects," the Ministry of Culture's letter states.

In particular, the urgent drying of the storage facilities began with the involvement of additional technical equipment. The museum objects that got wet were temporarily moved to safer areas, and artist-restorers and curators are conducting an object-by-object inspection of the exhibits to determine the extent of damage and the necessary restoration and conservation work.