Bombs and basements
A life underground for children in eastern Ukraine
AJ+ Global Engager, Europe
When will the war end? If you ask the children, they may tell you “summertime.” If you ask the adults, summer is a darker time still, with expectations of a renewal of violence.
The devastation in eastern Ukraine is vast. Artillery fire, from both sides, has destroyed entire neighborhoods and cities. People initially took shelter in their basements for protection. Now that bombing has decreased after a ceasefire was signed on Feb. 11, people are faced with the long-term consequences of a land contaminated with mines and unexploded ordnances.
Journalist Georgi Totev and photographer Georgi Kozhuharov were in the embattled Donetsk region just days before the ceasefire was signed and shared their experience and photos with us. They visited one of the bomb shelters, an old community cultural center, where more than 15o people are currently living. “Many people have been inside the shelter since last June and many of the children have not been out in broad daylight since January,” says Totev.
Today, people are still living underground. According to the UNHCR, there were about 1,000 people living underground in the Donetsk region as of last month. Many of them are children. The number of people living underground has decreased since the ceasefire, says Nina Sorokopud, UNHCR’s regional public information officer in Ukraine. But she adds that “the situation remains precarious; many have lost everything: their jobs, life savings and homes.” Many have no other option but to remain underground.
This is Pavel. He is among the people living in what used to serve as a cultural center in the Petrovsky district of metropolitan Donetsk. The basement, which they all share, is about 90 square meters, filled with mattresses, tents and kitchen appliances. A mini-community formed by war. There is no central heating or running water. But it is safe.
“These are the most destitute of Ukrainians,” says AP reporter Nataliya Vasilyeva, who has been chronicling the life of children at war. “These people were either too poor or too old to flee when the conflict began and still can’t manage or afford to go anywhere else.”
Last month, UNICEF estimated that over 140,000 children had been displaced during the Ukraine war and that, at the very least, 100,000 now need special psychological support. The latest numbers, says UNHCR’s Nina Sorokopud, are closer to 152,000.
When will the war end? When can Pavel go home? There may be no home to go back to.
Nikolay Nikolov is AJ+’s Global Engager for Europe, which means he helps cultivate and generate conversation for AJ+ in the region. He is based in London.
