Planning for a possible evacuation has become routine for this large family, who reside in a multi-story building partially destroyed by mortar shells.
Since 2014, Krasnogorivka has known the war against pro-Russian separatists, supported by Moscow. Despite a relative calm, sporadic gunshots continue to plague the small town.
“The building was directly hit four times. We are afraid all the time. Our neighbor was injured by shrapnel three months ago,” says Natalia Chanovska, 45, a mother of six.
In his apartment there are bullet holes in the walls.
For eight years, this family has not had gas and heating, so they installed a traditional stove fueled with wood, which they collect nearby.
And, Natalia is afraid that the problems will not end here.
“The front line is very close. Everyone is afraid, and so are we,” he confides.
Currently, the more than 100,000 soldiers that Russia has deployed on the border with Ukraine increase the anguish of women, who live in the epicenter of the conflict, which has caused some 14,000 deaths in eight years, according to the UN.
In this city with barely 15,000 inhabitants, the authorities have asked individuals, schools and hospitals to prepare their shelters.
Thus, for example, the main hospital in Krasnogorivka renews the water in its shelter, a place that dates back to Soviet times.
“We can take in neighbors and hospital staff in case of an attack. If the shelling starts, we will set up beds there. There is room for up to 280 people,” Sergei Fedenko, director of the hospital, told AFP.
When the Crimean war began in 2014, many inhabitants took refuge there for more than three months. But, currently the situation is complicated by Covid-19.
“We cannot transfer the sick who need oxygen to the shelter. It is not possible to move them in the event of a shooting. I don’t know what is the worst for them,” says Tetiana, a nurse who does not want to reveal her last name; whose opinion she is contrary to that of the authorities.
For her part, Ludmila Isaichenko, 73, a patient with a neurological disease, is fatalistic. If Russia attacks, she will refuse to go down to the shelter.
“If they shoot I plan to lie down and not move, no matter what happens. But, I am permanently afraidat the slightest noise, when someone uncovers a bottle, I have the impression that they are bombing,” he says.
Ilia Jelnovatsky, a 16-year-old student, shows the hatch in her kitchen, which conceals the entrance to a basement shelter. “He has saved our lives a thousand times,” he says.
He then shows his provisions, consisting of jars of tomatoes and cucumbers.
“In case of a Russian attack,” the teenager and his relatives initially plan to flee, but not forever.
“You have to take the money, the passport and leave. But, we will return,” he says.
He even has a plan in case of an evacuation, but he is hopeful that fears will not materialize and it will not need to be put into action, because there have been few serious shootings since the beginning of the year.
However, this is not enough for Natalia Chanovska and her brood. “If everything restarts, we will have to take refuge in the basement, where we do not have water or electricity. Life here is very hard, it worries me,” she adds.
Source: Ambito
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