No gas, water, or electricity, but life moves on in Ukrainian shelters

By Davit Kachkachishvili

LYSYCHANSK, Ukraine (AA) - No gas, water, or electricity, along with relentless Russian fighter jets bombing and cold weather, has been the everyday reality for Ukrainians taking refuge in the Lysychansk city of eastern Luhansk Oblast or administrative division since the beginning of the war on Feb. 24.

People who took refuge for months in shelters in Lysychansk city, Severodonetsk region, told Anadolu Agency about the war horrors they witnessed.

Hundreds of civilians have taken refuge in various city shelters, their only hope of survival amid the intense fighting, heavy bombing, and artillery attacks on the front lines of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Life in a shelter, mostly in school buildings, continues despite harsh conditions thanks to the efforts of Ukrainian security forces and volunteers who have dared to enter the region where intense air strikes take place on a regular basis.

Ala Velelyuk, 80, who has been in the shelter since the beginning of March due to a lack of a safe place to stay, told Anadolu Agency that she lived in Severodonetsk, very close to Lysychansk, and now a scene of street fighting.

Velelyuk said her daughter and son-in-law in Severodonetsk refused to leave their home, and took shelter at the building depot.

"My daughter and son-in-law stayed there. I have no idea how they are. I can't reach them. There is no phone network. They don't know anything about me either," she said.

The gas and electricity supplies in Severodonetsk have been cut off since March 1, she said, adding that she stayed in the shelter there for a while before being evacuated to Lysychansk about three months ago because the humanitarian aid had barely reached the city.

Velelyuk also said she normally spends all her time in the shelter and that she has nothing to do there except for sitting all day.

"There are constant blasts outside, but when the situation calms down, we step outdoors for fresh air. We often hear explosions, and today, there are more intense explosions," she added.

She added that what has transpired on the streets felt lighter in the shelter, noting: "We, too, sense danger here. We have no idea what will happen in the future."

The elderly Ukrainian woman said she lost her husband at an early age and that she could not go to safer areas due to her age and lack of resources.

"There are about 40 people in our room alone. There are civilians in other rooms as well. It is cold here. … There are children (as well). I hope the war will end soon," she said.

- Difficult conditions

Lyuba, 70, a woman who has been living in the shelter since the end of February and refused to provide her full name, told Anadolu Agency that the rest of her family is in another district of Luhansk, but she could not find the time to go there.

"I used to get up from the shelter and go home to cook while there was still electricity, gas, and water at home. A hot meal could be prepared at least once a day. I used to bring the food here," she said.

Now the city has been without gas, water, and electricity for more than a month, she said, adding: "We are always here now. Volunteers help us out here."

Lyuba explained that life in the shelter goes on under difficult conditions.

"The situation is critical here. People are, of course, in a difficult situation because the majority of them are old and sick. Some people ask us why we don't go to safer places. I stayed because I couldn't afford to leave.

"My only source of income is a retirement pension," she added.

She emphasized that most of those in the shelter have been there since the beginning of the war.

"Some of them left, and others arrived to take their place. Many people arrived here after their homes were damaged by artillery attacks. There are also people from other districts of the city," she said.

The building above the shelter was also damaged as a result of the intense air attack in the region, she said, underlining the danger to her and others who live there.

"They also dropped a bomb here. Fragments of the bomb that exploded in the courtyard damaged the building. The windows were shattered," she explained.

She said her daughter is currently living in Russia. She could not talk to her family members for a long time because there is no phone network available in the shelter, she added.

*Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev in Ankara