A Russian rocket strike obliterated an apartment building in eastern Ukraine this past Saturday, killing 15 people. On Sunday, rescuers picked through the rubbles and debri searching for two dozen people, including a child, who were feared to be trapped. Meanwhile, dazed residents who survived the Saturday evening attack retrieved personal belongings and told stories of their miraculous escape.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said the attack in the town of Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region was “another terrorist attack” and Russia should be designated as a state sponsor of terrorism.
One woman was seen walking out of the destroyed building carrying an ironing board under her arm, an umbrella and a plastic shopping bag. Others simply watched rescue efforts, fearing the worst as the dead were removed.
“We ran to the basement, there were three hits, the first somewhere in the kitchen,” said a local resident who gave her name as Ludmila.
“I was thrown into the bathroom, it was all chaos, I was in shock, all covered in blood,” A survivor, who gave her name as Venera, said, crying. “By the time I left the bathroom, the room was full up of rubble, three floors fell down. I never found the kittens under the rubble.”
The biggest conflict in Europe since World War Two has killed thousands, left cities and towns in ruins and seen more than 5.5 million Ukrainians flee their country.
Russian news agencies quoted separatist officials as saying on Sunday that Ukraine’s military had been shelling Donetsk using NATO-standard 155-mm artillery since the morning, wounding two residents.
Ukrainian military spokespeople were not immediately available for comment.
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