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9.06.2022

“Mom, will they kill us?”: how a family from Okhtyrka evacuated to Bulgaria

Okhtyrka is a small town in Sumy oblast, close to the border with Russia. It’s right on an intersection of three oblasts – Sumy, Kharkiv and Poltava. Before the war, Okhtyrka was known as an oil production place. However, during the full-scale Russia’s invasion of Ukraine it became one of the first cities to bear the brunt of enemy’s force. 

“Mom, will they kill us?”: how a family from Okhtyrka evacuated to Bulgaria

Olena Mazurenko (names changed for ethical reasons), her mom, and two daughters, 13 and 16 years old, didn’t believe that war had started until the very last moment. And they couldn’t imagine that the war would come to their own city. “We couldn’t believe Russia would attack Ukraine,” the woman said. “Unfortunately, it is not a dream.” 

To hide from shelling, the family converted their garage basement into shelter. They hid there 5-7 times a day, frozen as they listened while the “Grads” fired and prayed. It was relatively fine when the explosions were far away. That was until Olena’s family heard a tank coming close to their shelter, turning right near their garage and firing at everything in its way. “It seemed like you’d faint from the fear,” Olena recalls. After that incident the family decided to stay at home and not run to the shelter. 

“During the first days of war, many Russian wounded and bloodied soldiers were running around the Okhtyrka forest. Or breaking into the backyards of locals asking for help, food, or bandaging,” Olena remembers.


You Hear the Sounds of Aircraft and Realize You Might Be Gone in Seconds

The real horror started when the power plant and a military unit came under attack. The city was left out without heating. Russian military (often referred to as Ruscists, a portmanteau of “Russia” and “fascists”) started destroying grocery stores and warehouses, and even bombing residential areas. “It was so awful when you heard the sounds of the aircraft and realize you might be gone in seconds,” Olena shared. People started leaving the city en-masse. Olena’s family stayed, however, hoping for the war to soon end. 

Shelling was a daily occurence. The occupiers were especially fierce in the early morning between 1:00 and 5:00 AM. “We didn’t sleep for several days. The kids kept asking: ‘Mom, where are they bombing? Is it far away? Are we going to be hit? Are they firing at areas with no people?’ I told them it was far away, but through the window I saw the fiery-red lighting, felt it was close from the nearby sounds, and froze in horror.”

Every day was worse than the last. More and more buildings were destroyed, more and more shots were heard. “I started shaking with fear when night fell. My hands and feet became cold. It was as if you were waiting for something but you didn’t know what to wait for.” Olena says it was hard to tell the day of the week or time of the day because of that constant stress. You just keep listening for how close the bombings are. Later, both the electricity and internet disappeared, grocery supply began to dry up in the shops. But even then the family didn’t want to leave and abandon their home. They all believed it would end soon.


I Was Killed But I Forgot to Die

One of those horrible nights when shelling explosions were quite close, the girls hugged Olena and started begging: “Mom, we want to live. Will they kill us? Why? Let’s leave and move somewhere. At least for a while.” And it was at that moment that she started thinking about evacuation for the first time. However, she was not determined enough to leave their home. Besides, her mom had health problems and simply refused to go. Olena didn’t want to leave without her.  

March 4th marked a year since Olena’s dad passed away. He was commemorated by the sounds of an air siren. “All of a sudden, a bomber aircraft flew past our house. The sound was so loud that you couldn’t hear the kids screaming. Chandeliers fell. Windows were breaking. I fell on my knees and started praying: Not today, I’m begging you!” – Olena recalls.  

On March 7th, the day of the Forgiveness Sunday, it was suspiciously quiet. And then the hell started overnight. The Russian military bombed Okhtyrka’s downown area: the city hall, the house of culture,  and the shops. “Why? Why Okhtyrka? – a voice screamed inside me. Horror? Fear? Tears? No. I thought I was killed but forgot to die,” Olena remembers. The whole city was covered with shattered glass and debris from houses. The houses that were not ruined completely “watched” the world with broken empty windows. The smell was horrible and smoke made the eyes teary. Then Olena’s family finally decided to leave.


Starving Dogs Saw Us Off with Howling 

On March 10th when it was -15C outside, Olena’s family rushed to the evacuation bus. Starving and frozen dogs, left homeless, saw them off with howling. At every other road turn the territorial defense units checked their documents. “There were no humanitarian corridors out of the city. We were taken out of the city by detour roads. Pavlo Kuzmenko, the city mayor, came into every bus to say some words of support before we took the tough roads,” the woman says. The road to Poltava was quite an easy one, but Olena’s family was going to Bulgaria, where her older daughter’s goddaughter lives. 

The journey was tough, both physically and mentally. “We boarded an evacuation train heading to Lviv from Poltava. Instead of 36 passengers, the train car had 236. People slept piled on the floor, stood, hung on the railings, and fell. Many were from the Sumy and Kharkiv areas. Pale, gray, and hungry faces seemed all alike but differed at the same time. With so much despair and pain in their eyes, asking the same silent question: “Why?” When people found out that Olena was from Okhtyrka, they shook their heads and wondered how they all stayed alive. Everyone in Ukraine knew about Okhtyrka already.

It was getting more and more crowded. There was gunfire close to Kyiv and the train was forced to stop for about three hours. It was very hot and stuffy. Little kids cried. Fear and uncertainty came back. “My daughters cuddled close and asked: ‘They won’t kill us, right?’ I said the train is bulletproof and nothing could happen to us. I knew it was a mediocre explanation for teenagers, but I wanted to somehow calm them down at least a little.”


It was worth being on the road longer to believe in people again 

It took them about 20 hours to get to Lviv. One of the passengers told Olena it’s better to go to Uzhhorod, which would mean an additional eight hours spent on the road. Later she figured out it was better to go to Bulgaria through Chernivtsi, but the rationale of her mind was blocked at that time. The main thing was keep going. Keep going far from the horrors of war.  

“Volunteers helped us a lot in Uzhhorod. They clearly, competently and cheerfully told us where the best place was to go, and they helped in words and deeds: they fed us, gave us water, and settled everyone for the night. People of different professions and ages, united by an incredible spiritual strength. I remember everyone who was on duty at that time,” shares Olena. 

With her mom and two kids, Olena sat at the station, waiting for a bus to go to the Romanian border. “I tried not to fall asleep so I could watch our belongings, but sleep had taken over me. When I opened my eyes, I saw five volunteers and three police officers keeping our dream alive. For the first time in days I cried from gratitude and positive emotions. To believe in people again, it was worth taking the longer road.”


They are our true neighbors

It was quite costly to get to the Romanian border. They crossed the border on foot. After the border document check in Romania, volunteers met the refugees. Everyone was fed, and the volunteers provided them with clothing, toys for kids, and food for the road ahead. 

Olena recalls, “They didn’t ask if we needed food. They just gave it to everyone and said, “You are our neighbors. You have war. Misfortune. We have to help you. And we will help you.” They appeared to be our true neighbors. Volunteers gave us a ride to the station and helped to buy tickets to Bucharest, Romania’s capital.” There, Olena and her family boarded a train to Bulgaria. On the train they met people from different all over Ukrainian, and everyone had heard about Okhtyrka. 

Volunteers met them again in Bucharest. “We don’t know the Romanian language, they don’t speak any Ukrainian, but we managed to understand each other,” says Olena, “Even the locals tried their best to help us with luggage, or just help with anything. They hugged us and said ‘Everything’s gonna be ok’ using the best Ukrainian they could pronounce.”

Other Ukrainians that they met at the station were heading to different countries: Spain, Israel, France, Turkey. United by broken destinies, ruined homes, fear, and hopelessness – things that force refugees to flee from their country. “The farther we were from Ukraine, the bigger was the will to go back home to Okhtyrka,” admits Olena.


Physically in Safety, Mentally in Okhtyrka

On March 13th, the whole family from Okhtyrka arrived in Varna, Bulgaria and were met by the godmother who drove them further to Balchik town where they got hotel accommodation. “We were tired, hungry, and devastated. My mom’s leg was swollen as she has problems with blood circulation. It’s great that the hotel had a doctor who helped her. Physically we were in safety, but mentally – in Okhtyrka. We knew there was no shelling here but were afraid of every loud sound.”

Olena’s family has more or less adapted in Bulgaria. They arranged all the documents for a temporary stay in the country within a one-year period with the right to be able to leave at any time. This allows the kids to attend any local kindergarten or a school, however, both of Olena’s daughters attend classes online in a Ukrainian school. Olena can also get a job, but the local language is required everywhere and the offers she gets are seasonal or low-paid jobs. Refugees that pay for rent on their own can get a one-time allowance that is equivalent to UAH 6,000. Those who stay at the hotel, like Olena, are provided with free accommodation and meals. 

“I’m grateful to everyone who helped my family and all the Ukrainians abroad. I wish none of you hears a single shot or sees a missile. And all of us, who were forced to flee from our Motherland, will be able to return as soon as possible to our peaceful and strong Ukraine,” Olena expressed, “I strongly believe we all can do that soon and hope to return home.”

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