Survival in Kiev: Walking dogs, riding electric scooters, and drinking water in the city-owned Typsy Cherry, a local bar in Kharkiv
In its broadest strike against civilians since the invasion, Russia hit at least 11 Ukrainian cities with missiles. But even amid destruction, many people sheltered for only a few hours. Some quickly went back to their lives. People in the capital of Ukranian were walking dogs and riding electric scooters as Megan Specia, a Times foreign correspondent, left a shelter.
On Monday, state television not only reported on the suffering, but also flaunted it. It showed plumes of smoke and carnage in central Kyiv, along with empty store shelves and a long-range forecast promising months of freezing temperatures there.
Putin thought a brutal show of force was necessary, as much for his own people as for the west, because of domestic pressure over Russia’s flailing war effort.
In the northeastern city of Kharkiv, where there have been more bombardments than in the other city, residents have stocked up on food, gas and drinking water. Yet they also entertained themselves at the Typsy Cherry, a local bar. “The mood was cheerful,” its owner, Vladyslav Pyvovar, told The Times. People drank, had fun and were wondering when the electricity would come back. (Power came back hours later.)
The Director for the Department of Municipal Security, Roman Tkachuk, spoke about the possibility of an emergency on Sunday, but there were no plans to evacuate the city.
If you have extended family, please consider the possibility of staying with friends outside of Ukranian if we were to go without electricity, water, or an oven for a long time.
He wants to make us leave the land so that he can have it. The president of Russia wants that, according to the pugilists.
The “madness” of Kherson and the evacuae of an Afghan man in the city of Zaporizhia
Tkachuk said each district within the city will have about 100 heating centers to operate in case of emergencies in the winter. These heating centers will be equipped with heat, lighting, toilets, canteens, places to rest, warm clothes, blankets and an ambulance crew will be on duty near such centers, the statement said.
“I still can’t believe that I left there,” says Viktor, while pulling a red suitcase from the black car he rode to Zaporizhia, about 25 miles from occupied territory. “The madness.”
His home is just outside Kherson. He and his wife had three daughters there. The Russians broke into their house within hours of them leaving, Viktor says a neighbor told him.
ACNN crew was waved into the city by a small group of soldiers from the Ukrainian military who were outside the city center.
At a Zaporizhzhia shelter, a volunteer who asks that he be called by his middle name, Artyom, helps care for Kherson evacuees as if they were his own family. Artyom asked that we not use his full name to protect his relatives in Kherson.
Artyom’s fears about a Russian woman he meets at a street market: A battle-looms scenario for ukraine
His wife generally stays home as much as she can. But to earn money, she sells potatoes and vegetables she grows in her own garden at a local street market.
But Artyom says it’s not fine. He counts his fingers as he lists off his various fears: He worries that the Russians will stop his wife. She’s going to get sick, that’s what he fears. She is four months pregnant. He’s worried about the baby.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2022/11/07/1134465380/kherson-ukraine-russia-battle-looms
Kherson’s street market: a place where people can’t leave without knowing where to go, and how to make the most of their lives
Holovnya, who is living in Kyiv, calls some of them collaborators. He says there are people who can’t leave. Many are older. Others have few resources. He says that their lives are very intense.
Since the war began, local street markets have popped up, which has led to little public interaction in the city. Most of the stores in Kherson are either closed or have empty shelves, so local farmers and bakers have been selling and trading items at the street markets.
“You can buy most things, from starting with medicine and finishing with meat,” says Natalyia Schevchenko, 30, who fled Kherson this summer. It’s very bad to observe. On one car, they sell medicine on the hood and on the side they cut meat.”
Schevchenko, who is volunteering at an Odesa nonprofit called Side-by-Side to evacuate residents from Kherson and other occupied territories, remains in contact with those in the city. She says her grandmother keeps her updated on everything.
Artyom and his wife talk whenever they can get a decent connection. They generally try to keep their conversations light; they worry that Russians are listening in.
It’s scary — but they agree it’s a good thing. They think that it means Artyom may be able to go back home soon.
“Ukraine was Russia’s until November 11,” as the Russians traded fire in the Dnipro River region of Kherson
Our team was forced to drive through fields and diversions, as well as bridges that were blown up, during the journey through smaller towns.
Russian forces retreated from the west bank of the Dnipro River in the southern region of Kherson, leaving the regional capital of the same name to the Ukrainians.
According to reports, the billboards that once said “Ukraine is Russian forever” have been spray-painted with a message that said “Ukraine was Russia’s until November 11.”
The city has no electricity, no water and no internet connection. The mood was joyful as a CNN crew entered the city center.
Once the scene of large protests against Russian plans to transform the region into a breakaway pro-Russian republic, the streets of Kherson are now filled with jubilant residents wrapped in Ukrainian flags, or with painted faces, singing and shouting.
The military presence is still limited, with huge applause from crowds on the street every time a truck full of soldiers drives past, with Ukrainian troops being offered soup, bread, flowers, hugs and kisses.
As CNN stopped to rest, we watched an old man and woman hugging a young soldier, with hands on his shoulder, exchanging excited “Thank yous.”
With the occupiers gone, everyone wants you to understand what they’ve been through, how euphoric they feel right now, and how much they’re grateful to the countries who have helped them.
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian and Russian forces traded fire on Monday from across the broad expanse of the Dnipro River that now divides them after Russia’s retreat from the southern city of Kherson, reshaping the battlefield with a victory that Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, declared marked “the beginning of the end of the war.”
The Dnipro has become the new front line in southern Ukraine, and officials there warned of continued danger from fighting in regions that have already endured months of Russian occupation.
The south district of the city was the site of heavy gun fire throughout the day, stoking fears that the Russian Army might retaliate for the loss of the city with a bombardment from its positions on the eastern bank.
Mortar shells struck near the bridge, sending up puffs of smoke. Near the riverfront, incoming rounds rang out with thunderous, metallic booms. It was not possible to assess what had been hit.
Ukrain’s Resilient High-Energy Military Empowerment Crisis: The Case of Novoraysk, a Small City in Kherson, Ukraine
The Ukrainian government is setting up evacuation routes to the cities of Mykolaiv and Kryvyi Rih, said Iryna Vereshchuk, a Ukrainian deputy prime minister. She said that power supplies wouldn’t be enough to heat homes where children, the sick and people with reduced mobility live. “It will not be a mass evacuation. It will cover those who are sick, the elderly and those left without care of their relatives.”
The mines are dangerous. Four people, including an 11-year-old, were killed when a family driving in the village of Novoraysk, outside the city, ran over a mine, Mr. Yanushevich said. After lines were damaged, six railway workers were injured when they tried to restore service. And there were at least four more children reportedly injured by mines across the region, Ukrainian officials said in statements.
The deaths underscored the threats still remaining on the ground, even as Mr. Zelensky made a surprise visit to Kherson, a tangible sign of Ukraine’s soaring morale.
“We are, step by step, coming to all of our country,” Mr. Zelensky said in a short appearance in the city’s main square on Monday, as hundreds of jubilant residents celebrated.
BORODIANKA, Ukraine — The Russian troops who pulverized this small town are gone. But as residents try to rebuild from the rubble, Russian missiles blasting other parts of Ukraine keep knocking out the electricity here as well.
“Occupants rob local people and exchange stuff for samogon,” or homemade vodka, said one resident, Tatiana, who communicated via a secure messaging app from Oleshky, a town across the river from Kherson City. They get even more aggressive after getting drunk. We’re so scared here. She wanted her name to be kept off of her in order for security.
Ivan stated that the Russians tend to wander around and 888-609- 888-609- 888-609- 888-609- 888-609- 888-609- He asked that his name be not used in order to protect himself, because he was from South Kherson city. We try to get someone local to stay in the place. So that it is not abandoned and Russians don’t take it.”
Borodian kabanksy power cuts: The loss of a rural farming community in Ukraine during the early stages of the Cold War
During the week, he shares the school with nearly 1,000 students. When there are power disruptions, the school provides heat, food and water for the community.
Power cuts have lasted up to 24 hours, he says. In this agricultural region, farming equipment and warehouses were destroyed. He estimates business activity is one-third of what it was.
Many Ukrainians were killed in the early hours of February 24, when the Russians occupied the area. The town’s pre-war population was more than double that of today. Despite the lack of resources, it’s back to about 9,000.
People are coming from the main street. The ones that were destroyed and burned down,” says Olha Kobzar, a Ukrainian volunteer who is in charge of the temporary housing.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2022/12/10/1141536117/russia-war-ukraine-town-borodianka-banksy-power-cuts
War Ukraine: Borelian Ka-Banksy-Power-CUTs and Taras Shevchenko’s Bust
During an interview, the lights go out, leaving her standing in a darkened hallway. She says she’ll wait a while to see if the power comes back. She’ll turn on the generator if it starts to get cold. She says it’s like this every day.
There is a bust of Taras Shevchenko in the center of town. He was the one who supported Ukraine’s independence in the 19th century. He wrote, “It’s bad to be in chains and die a slave.”
A well-known British graffiti artist, known for his street spray-paintings, did some work on some badly scarred walls and later confirmed it was his work on social media.
One image shows a young boy tossing a man to the floor. Both are in martial arts attire. Russian leader Vladimir Putin is thought to be the man.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2022/12/10/1141536117/russia-war-ukraine-town-borodianka-banksy-power-cuts
The crisis in Ukraine is coming to an end: Drone attacks, oil spills, and blackouts, according to Ukrainian president Alexander Zelensky
People are very happy we’re getting attention. But the paintings are on buildings that were destroyed,” Yerko says. “We’re planning to remove the paintings and put them somewhere else.”
More than 1.5 million people in the southern part of Ukraine were left without power Saturday night as a result of Russian drone strikes, according to the president of the country.
Mr. Zelensky said in his address that 10 of the drones used by the Russian forces had been shot down by the Ukrainians. It was not possible to verify his total.
The Ukrainians rely on the plants and equipment for heat and light, and the repeated assaults have drawn condemnation from world leaders and have put the country into a dire cycle of power being knocked out again.
Mr. Zelensky said Saturday night that the power went off in various parts of Ukrainian including the capital, Kyiv. Some are what he classified as “emergency” outages resulting from attacks. Others are what he called “stabilization” outages, or planned blackouts on a schedule.
The power grid is in need of assistance and people are urged to reduce their power use.
“It must be understood: Even if there are no heavy missile strikes, this does not mean that there are no problems,” he continued. “Almost every day, in different regions, there is shelling, there are missile attacks, drone attacks. Energy facilities are frequently hit.
Violation of the war laws of Ukraine by missile and drone attacks on civilian infrastructure in the city of Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine
“Water supply has been restored to all residents of the capital. Half of Kyiv residents already have heating and we are working to restore it to all residents of the city,” the city’s mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a post on Telegram on Saturday.
The war laws of war were violated by the repeated missile and drones attacks on civilian infrastructure, according to experts.
The body of an 18-month-old child was pulled from the rubble of an apartment block in the city of Kryvyi Rih, which was destroyed by a missile on Friday.
Local officials said that the boy, his parents and a woman were killed. Another 13 people, including four children, were injured, Reznichenko said.
Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city military administration, says more than 100 people lived in the apartment block that was struck. They and residents of adjacent homes which were damaged are being looked after in a temporary facility, he said.
Oleh Synie HUBV, the head of the military administration in eastern Ukraine, stated on Friday that critical infrastructure facilities were hit in Chuhuiv district.
The missile strikes left sections of the Ukrainian railway system without power, but back-up diesel locomotives were being used to make up for it.
Ukraine’s energy minister, Herman Halushchenko, said that nine power-generating facitilites were damaged in Friday’s attacks, and warned of more emergency blackouts.
The urban life of Kyiv during the February 24 invasion: a week’s worth of daylight, electricity, water and connectivity outages
Since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, the country has been in a state of flux. Ukrainians have had to recalibrate their idea of what normal is monthly, weekly, daily — or even hourly.
During the summer months, the war’s visible signs were less apparent. “Normal” then meant bustling restaurants and bars — at least until curfew — and the mood throughout the city was jovial, as people celebrated Russian withdrawals and Ukrainian victories.
The fall’s sounds started to sound like generators and a chorus of birds and street musicians. Nowadays, Kyiv’s winter “normal” consists of electricity, water and connectivity outages — both scheduled and spontaneous — loosely correlated with Russia’s near-weekly drone and missile assaults on the city.