In Ukraine's blitzed Bakhmut, residents accustomed to death

In Ukraine's blitzed Bakhmut, residents accustomed to death

Bakhmut's few remaining residents have grown accustomed to death
Bakhmut's few remaining residents have grown accustomed to death. Photo: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP
Source: AFP

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Elderly people quietly cycle under bombardment, and children ride scooters on sidewalks that vibrate from artillery fire.

Bakhmut, a ghost town in eastern Ukraine torn apart by four months of brutal battles with invading Russian forces, has seen so much destruction that its few remaining residents have grown accustomed to death.

As Russian troops aided by paramilitaries from the shadowy Wagner group exchange fire with Ukrainian forces on a daily basis, locals say they have learned to live under constant fire.

Sergiy, a 56-year-old resident, said he no longer even raises his head when Russian missiles whistle past above.

"It happened just like that. One day we got used to it," he told AFP, clad in a tracksuit and slippers.

Read also

Indigenous Guarani live in deepening poverty in Brazil

"At first, each boom scared us, but we got used to it," he said, declining to give his last name.

PAY ATTENTION: Never miss breaking news – join Briefly News' Telegram channel!

On the wet pavement near his house, the blood of one of Sergiy's neighbours was still visible among the green and yellow autumn leaves.

He was one of seven people killed in bombardment on Monday.

Bakhmut, once a quiet town of some 70,000 people, is now a shadow of its former self, with no electricity, water or phone connection.

Survivors dressed day and night in their winter clothes, cluster together to cut wood for heating and to cook meals over fire outside their apartment buildings.

'I can't stay anymore'

Several thousand people remain on the Ukraine-controlled side of Bakhmut, according to local officials. It's unclear how many have stayed in the occupied part of town.

Read also

Underground life endures near Ukraine front

On the wet pavement, the blood of one of Sergiy's neighbours was still visible among the autumn leaves
On the wet pavement, the blood of one of Sergiy's neighbours was still visible among the autumn leaves. Photo: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP
Source: AFP

When a mortar shell hit an apartment building on Monday, Sergiy ran to take shelter under a porch.

But a fellow local was not spared.

"We came out and saw this man lying here with his chest open and without a head," Sergiy said coldly. "We can't even know who it was, he was there like a piece of meat."

Zoya Timoshenka, a 73-year-old retiree, lives on the first floor of the bombed-out building.

"Be careful, there's lots of glass here," she told AFP journalists as she led them to what remained of her flat.

Icy wind and autumn drizzle blew through a gaping hole in the wall where the window once stood between embroidered curtains.

An elderly woman examines her damaged home in Bakhmut
An elderly woman examines her damaged home in Bakhmut. Photo: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP
Source: AFP

After Monday's attack, Timoshenka had finally decided to leave.

Her daughter-in-law, Natalya Timoshenka, said both would evacuate to the city of Dnipro some 250 kilometres (155 miles) further west.

"With what happened yesterday, with this man killed downstairs, I can't stay anymore," said the 48-year-old.

Read also

Displaced by flooding, Nigerians in desperate need of help

Her retired mother-in-law had packed her entire life into three shopping bags.

"If we stay here, we don't have 36,000 options: Either we are buried under the rubble, or we lose an arm or a leg, or we die," said the elder Timoshenka, before boarding a yellow evacuation bus.

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.