The Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia is surrounded by Russian troops. About 70 per cent of the state is under Russian occupation. From Melitopol to Burdyansk, the Russian flag is waving over the cities. Here, explosions are heard at regular intervals.
In this special report, India Today talks to refugees in Zaporizhzhia as they recount their stories of fleeing their homes and living in a bunker.
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Tertanya, 68, keeps seeing the terrifying scenes on her mobile. She is watching a video of the deadly phosphorus bomb which is banned in the international world. The clip of burning embers raining from the sky. Terror fills her eyes. What will be the fate of their village, or of their friends, she wonders.
Tertanya, 68, resident of Huliaipole, a city near Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine. (Photo: India Today)
“They started bombing with these phosphorous bombs when I had already left the town and I didn’t see them myself, but I was sent the video and the message came from confirmed sources. Some people are still there, my daughter’s husband’s parents are still there. They decided to stay and they sat in the basement with 30 people. My best friend is still there, too. I was talking to her yesterday and asked her to leave town immediately,” she said.
Her village is 70 kms away from Zaporizhzhia. She never thought that her village would be bombed since there is no military base, but she was wrong.
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Even when the missiles started falling on the village, she did not leave the house. She lived alone in the basement for three weeks despite suffering from a kidney disease.
When asked why she did not leave her town at once, she said, “I thought I would protect my home, my land, my building. I thought it would stop soon. My children escaped because they have small children. They asked me to go with them, but I didn’t. They left along with their cousins in their private car. I said I would stay, my daughter was calling me and crying and then she found me the other car to leave.”
“IT WAS HELL”
Recalling his experience, Eugan, who fled from Mariupol, said it was impossible to escape from all the areas of Russian occupation.
Eugan said, “I will thank this car, this car was my life. I walked with my family for four days and crossed 30 checkpoints on the way. It was hell.”
Eugan, a resident of Mariopol. (Photo: India Today)
Mariupol has suffered the heaviest devastation at the hands of the Russians. Eugan said there is no fear now. The scene of death, the sound of bullets, he had seen it all.
He spent many days in a bunker before reaching Zaporizhzhia with four family members. Though, his father was left behind in the village.
“I left my father behind in my village. I want to go to Germany with my family but my daughter, Maria, 11, finds her house to be the most lovely. She left everything behind except a bag and this doll,” he said.
Maria, 11, a resident of Mariopol. (Photo: India Today)
“STOP WAR IN UKRAINE PLEASE!”
Maria said, “This doll was presented to me when I was in Melitopol. I was really happy. My friends are still there and they can’t leave the village. All the humanitarian corridors are closed and it’s so hard to leave by car. Stop the war in Ukraine please!”
Maria recounts that one day they returned home to find that their house had been broken into and there were shards of glass everywhere. The door was open and everything was in disarray. Maria’s mother, Olena, was a school teacher.
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She said, “We were not at home and when we came back we saw the window of the house was broken. How can the Russian army do this? They could have waited for us, I don’t know. They took the cups. Our house was upside down. How can they do all this?”
Maria, 11, plays with her doll. (Photo: India Today)
From that day Olena started worrying about her daughter. She was scared, she stopped eating and drinking. She started looking for a way to escape the village.
Olena said, “Finally we decided to leave because our territory was occupied and still is. The Russian military units and vehicles were driving through our village. We could hear all this rumbling and we were petrified. My hands were down, I was disorientated. I didn’t know what this was. I didn’t want to eat and drink anything. We couldn’t decide for so long to leave but we got the idea that we were absolutely alone. People around us were sympathising with us, helping us. But we were not protected. We had no protection, people around were armed. We decided to leave far away where we are not under attack.”
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