The shelling was claimed to had originated from residential areas in the village of Kalynivka, and the towns of Vuhlehirsk and Debaltseve, which prevented the Ukrainian military from responding due to fear of inflicting potential civilian casualties.[2] Ukrainian forces also claimed to had advanced 1.5 kilometers near the village of Luhanske,[2] seizing a strategic height from the separatists,[3] Hill 223.[10] According to the separatists, the fighting started when they themselves came under attack by the Ukrainian military near Debaltseve, but managed to eventually repulse the assault.[1] According to a separatist Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) official, 40 Ukrainian soldiers conducted the attack, supported by heavy artillery fire, with 150 shells being fired near the village of Kalynivka.[4] In all, 2,900 explosions were recorded in the region during the day, most around Svitlodarsk.[11]