Cherson

• Chiem Balduk

  foreign editor

“The water was up to the first floor. That’s why they were on the roof for four days. Now that the water has subsided, everything appears to have been washed away,” says Belgian-Ukrainian Nataliya Wintraecken emotionally. Her uncle and aunt live in the heavily affected village of Hola Prystan, which is occupied by the Russians. “They have nowhere to go, and they’re running out of food.”

In recent days, NOS spoke with aid workers and relatives of Ukrainians on the east bank of the Dnieper. More than a week after the collapse of the Kachovka dam, residents of the occupied part of the disaster area are still waiting for help. The river forms the frontline, leaving them to fend for themselves. Russia does not allow international aid.

Several villages on the east bank are still under water. Ukrainian authorities expect the Dnieper to return to its previous shape in about two weeks. The number of victims can only be guessed at. Ukraine reports at least 10 dead and 40 missing, Russia at least 18 dead.

The floods mainly affect the villages on the east bank, which is occupied by Russia:

Nataliya is in constant contact with her Ukrainian family. The uncle and aunt in Hola Prystan communicate with the rest of the family through a single contact, so that the phone battery lasts as long as possible.

In addition to power shortage, a lack of food is a major problem. “They lived off their vegetable garden and chickens, but everything has been washed away. They share what they have with the neighborhood, but the end is in sight.”

In the first days after the dam burst, food parcels were sent from neighboring places, said Tetjana Hasaneko, director of Olesjki, which was also badly hit, this week. “Due to fuel shortages, this was done with rowing boats and floating air mattresses.”

That is now no longer possible. “Because the water recedes, the area around the village has turned into a swamp,” says Nataliya. “It’s like a deserted island,” sketches Dmytro from Kherson, whose parents live in the disaster area. “There’s nowhere to go. There’s nothing to do but wait.”

A Ukrainian minister shared images of an aid campaign by drone. Food parcels were flown from the West Bank to a Russian-occupied village:

Russia says it has evacuated more than 7,500 people. As we have come to expect from the Russian state media, the relief efforts are proceeding without any problems. The contacts of the NOS paint a completely different picture. “Russia only evacuates people with a Russian passport,” says Dmytro.

Leaving on your own is also very dangerous, he continues. “Due to the circumstances it is a 45-minute boat ride to the other side, and the occupiers will shoot at you.” According to Ukraine, 133 people were able to escape this way, by boat or swimming. They arrive in shock, says aid worker Ines Salahno. “They’ve endured constant shelling. They can barely talk.”

Recent satellite images clearly show the flooding in Hola Prystan:

Nataliya’s relatives saw the shelling from their rooftops. “They saw auxiliary boats approaching, but then there was shooting from the Russian side,” says Nataliya. “Not on the boats, but on the water, as a deterrent. Why would you do that? It’s inhumane.”

Nevertheless, volunteers continue to make efforts to provide assistance. A network of aid workers is active in the occupied south, trying to get food, medication and fuel to the disaster area. Katja (full name known to the editors) is cooperating from Russia. “We bring boats to the area through local residents. We have already received about 20 boats in Oleshki.” The help is desperately needed, but must be organized as an underground resistance.

Local Telegram groups inform residents about options to leave. Since the dam burst, the groups, comparable to Dutch ‘neighborhood apps’ on WhatsApp, have been full of pleas for evacuation. “I heard an evacuation is taking place at the bus stop, does anyone know?” someone wrote. Another asks if her two dogs can be picked up.

The groups clearly show that many people have lost loved ones. “We are looking for Aleksej, 83 years old. He was supposed to have been evacuated on June 7, but we can’t find him anywhere.” The message gets no responses. Someone else is lucky.

The question of who saw Volodymyr from Prahodnaya Street will be answered within an hour. “I saw him today, he’s fine.” Only: his phone is empty.

• Chiem Balduk

  Foreign publisher

There was plenty of it celebrated and celebrated on the streets of Kherson, when the city was liberated from the Russian yoke six weeks ago. Meanwhile, little is left of the party atmosphere: Kherson is constantly terrorized by Russian missiles and snipers firing on the city on the other side of the Dnieper.

Since the city’s liberation, dozens of civilians have been killed by Russian attacks. Kherson is sometimes without electricity for days, due to the destruction of crucial infrastructure. The poor conditions have given rise to a new flow of refugees: citizens seek refuge in other parts of Ukraine or in Europe.

“They are hitting us hard,” resident Serhi says via Telegram. “It strikes every night and often during the day. As I write this, the windows and doors in my house are shaking.” Because many residents have left, there are relatively few casualties, he estimates. Yesterday the authorities reported 60 attacks on the city, but with “only” six injured and one dead.

There are dozens of impacts every day, says the head of the Kherson region. This includes both artillery and heavy mortar fire. Cluster munitions were used at least three times in attacks on Kherson, he said Human Rights Watch fixed. According to local authorities, there are also “indications” that phosphorus munitions have been deployed, possibly war crime.

Gradually, the city is demolished. Neighborhoods near the river are particularly affected. “Now it’s too dangerous to approach the shore,” says Serhi. Most of the houses are deserted.

The area around the port and the shipyard is the most bombed. The Ostriv (“Island”) district is of great economic importance to the city. Today the city council decided that the entire neighborhood will be evacuated, because it is too dangerous and there are no more electricity, gas and water.

Of the approximately 300,000 inhabitants of the city, about 80,000 remained after the liberation, the rest fled or missing. The number of refugees has only increased since the liberation, due to the difficult living conditions. The head of the city council, Galina Lugovaya, calls on people in damaged apartments to leave. Beds and hot meals are ready in reception places, says Loegovaya.

There are also people who return, like Andriy Yachenko. “I was in Tallinn with my wife when the invasion started, while our 12-year-old son was left behind in Kherson.” After two months they managed to get their son out of the city and the family returned only shortly after the liberation.

Life in the city is certainly not easy, he says, but certainly there are signs of hope. “Russian terrorists launch missiles at us every day, but in the meantime, shops, banks and pharmacies are reopening one after the other”.

Serhi also does not plan to leave, even though a kindergarten 100 meters from his home was destroyed this weekend and the facade of an apartment further away was blown away. “I reassure myself that my house can take some direct hits.” He tries to stay in the room furthest from the river as much as possible. “That’s how a set of walls keeps me safe.”

Aside from his father, his entire family is gone. He wants to stay in his Cherson at all costs. “Who else should brief you on what’s going on here?” he jokes him.