Shumy lies less than 10 kilometres (six miles) east of Toretsk, a mining town which had a pre-war population of around 32,000.
Russian troops are currently pushing towards the town in a fresh local offensive in the embattled Donetsk region.
Toretsk lies north-west of the city of Gorlivka, which has been under separatist control since 2014.
The city has been largely spared from the worst of the fighting but that has changed in recent weeks after Moscow's forces began advancing, taking the Ukrainian forces by surprise, the AFP news agency reported.
Ukrainian troops have been particularly vulnerable since the end of 2023 because of major delays in European and US arms deliveries, according to AFP.
Saturday is day 857 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(mo)
Source: Reuters, AFP