“The Russians in the shelter wanted to take us to them” – Corriere.it

From our LOOPOLI report – “There was a cold that I can’t describe. We felt cold at heart. We put our hoods on the broken windows to try to let in less air but I was shivering anyway, and at some point I didn’t know if I was shivering with cold or fear.” Daria Gorodnychaya28, talks about another Ukraine. It can only be his Mariupol And in the same country of this quiet square, in front of the central station of Lviv. He lets himself warm in the warm rays of the early afternoon sun and contemplates that disfigured city beyond recognition. “You have no idea what they did…”. Daria and AngelinaHer five-year-old daughter arrived by train with Mickey, the family’s dog. come from daysA barbaric siege of Mariupol passed in the basement of the palace in which they lived. No electricity, no communication, nothing to heat, food and water for rations. It’s dark. Darkness during the day allowed some rays of light to pass through, but in the evening and night it was thick and multiplied by fears and noises.

How many were you down there?

“In the year 170. At first we went down when the sirens sounded, but the situation got worse and worse. From March 2 onwards, the telephone and electricity lines were cut off, practically we were always there, like mice, in the cold and unable to communicate with the world ”.

Food and water?

We got some in the days leading up to the total disaster, and we rationalized everything. Now there is no more water in the city.”.

How did you manage to defend yourself from the cold?

Aside from the jackets on the window openings, we were blanketed in blankets. See here.” Shows a photo of two Sphynx (bald-haired) cats with two kittens, all dead: “The cold killed them, and I couldn’t save them.”.

Why did you decide to go out under the bombs?

“We have not decided. On the evening of March 16, Russian soldiers arrived inside the shelter. We were stunned, and no one said a word. They wanted us to get out of there. Someone answered: It is already evening, where are we going at this time? So they left us. We were alone.But they came back the next morning and told us to leave.

What did they say?

“They were righteous, and they came to liberate us. We deleted all the photos from their cell phones which could make them angry, because we know they often look at the phones. Someone was asked to undress to make sure there were no Nazi tattoos. A soldier saw these symbols (showing his left hand, soHe shouted at me: What am I? I told him it had nothing to do with Nazism, it’s just a drawing I like… He let me go.” The plane’s warning device is storming the station’s field. The little girl runs straight towards her mother crying.

Is she always so afraid of the sirens?

“Yes, she always does, it’s terrifying. That sound is terrifying for us adults, not to mention children… Only here now the remote possibility of an attack but even a few days ago, in Mariupol, the siren was an announcement of bombs and collapse of buildings And the dead and the dead. The wounded… these are paralyzing fears.”.

Has anyone in your family died in Mariupol?

Daria’s eyes filled with tears. He replied, “Mom.” “She died a few blocks from me and I couldn’t even see her, say goodbye to her one last time”.

I was isolated. How do you know for sure that she is dead?

When we sent the Russians away from the shelter we walked to the nearest village, twenty kilometers from Mariupol. There I found someone who knew my mother. He told me they buried her in a mass grave. All I do is think about loneliness and fear.”.

By what means did he leave the village?

Russian soldiers wanted us to get on buses to Russia. We refused. Not even dead I was going to leave for Russia. I found a car ride for a while, by bus another part, and then by train here”.

Where are you heading now?

“In Poland, where my husband lives and works. He wanted to come and take us but it was too dangerous. He couldn’t help but wait and pray”.

The worst day?

“Every day seemed to be the worst, but then the next day was worse.”

Do you think he will return to Mariupol?

“I don’t know if I will go back to live there. I will certainly go back to put a cross and a name where my mother is buried, it pains me so much to think of her there as such.”