Complex sentence: The city was awoken at 5 a.m. on New Year's Eve from a Russian bombardment, as the bombs and shells hit oil tanks on the western side of the city, creating black smoke that spread around the city.
Split into simpler sentences: The city was awoken at 5 a.m. on New Year's Eve from a Russian bombardment. Bombs and shells hit oil tanks on the western side of the city, creating black smoke that spread around the city.