“Like an apocalypse”: Kyiv residents tell how they survived the Russian massive attack on the capital

On the night of June 2, Kyiv experienced several waves of attacks by the Russian army. Drones and missiles of various types flew into the capital. According to the city authorities, six civilians were killed and 79 others were injured, including three children. As a result of the Russian massive attack in Kyiv, kindergartens, playgrounds, and medical facilities were damaged, residential buildings were destroyed, and dozens of cars burned down.

“First, the windows flew out. I was in a room that faced the other side, so I was lucky. Everything in the apartment was completely glassed. I immediately went down to the car. I think the car is beyond repair: everything is broken in the back, it won’t start, and it’s unlikely that anything can be done,” says Kyiv resident Taras, showing his car. Taras’s car was parked by the road in a residential area. It was damaged by a blast wave. Now the car is beyond repair.

Critical infrastructure facilities were also damaged, the DTEK production site was damaged. 140 thousand consumers were temporarily left without electricity. The largest power outages were in three districts of the capital, and in total, destruction after the combined attack was recorded in seven districts, local authorities report. Rescuers who were eliminating the consequences had to stop their work several times due to the risk of repeated attacks, as air raid sirens and explosions continued all morning.

“There are “arrivals” in almost all districts of Kyiv. The consequences of the attack are being eliminated. As for the injured, 60 people have been hospitalized, three of them are children. Doctors are now providing assistance to all of them. Headquarters have been deployed at the arrival sites, working to eliminate the consequences. There is a lot of destruction. We are now collecting information about them,” said Chairman Vitaliy Klitschko, commenting on the situation in the capital.

A mother of two children died on the way to the shelter. It happened in a residential complex. The woman died on the spot, and her children were hospitalized. According to eyewitnesses, explosions in the city were almost continuous, so some people did not have time to get to shelters in time.

“Smoke was everywhere. We squatted down with my daughter and tried to cover her, but a stone or a piece of building debris hit her and tore her jacket. She says her back hurts. Everything was covered in smoke. We could not understand what was happening. It was like some kind of apocalypse,” said Kyiv resident Olga Mudra.

In total, five medical institutions were damaged in Kyiv on June 2 due to falling debris and direct hits. But the outpatient clinic, which is one of the largest primary care medical institutions in the region and serves 20 thousand people, was the most affected.

“Thank God, there are no wounded. Our outpatient clinic is under technical protection. The destruction is very significant. There is a risk of collapse on one side. We can’t even go in to pick up some things. There is a lot of medical equipment. We are currently planning to move. We are currently drawing up a schedule, because we have a lot of patients, and it is impossible to receive them here,” explains the head of the medical institution, Lesya Yevlakhovich.

Experts have noticed that the Russian army has begun to use a new model of air strikes: attacks are carried out in several waves or in long continuous raids. This time, the shelling began in the evening of June 1, the strikes stopped for a while and continued with renewed force until noon on June 2.