Vira & Dmytro’s Story
Vira, a 36-year old logistics manager from Kyiv, initially experienced the explosions of war while in her apartment building with her mother, a 68-year old retiree. During the first air raids, they hid in the basement of a school located next to their building.
When a cruise missile hit a nearby building and a curfew was set due to the large number of sabotage groups, Vira took her mother and fled to the underground subway for safety. It was impossible to leave their refuge for 33 hours and they slept on the subway floor while restrooms were opened and hot meals were organized.
In another part of Kyiv, Vera’s 42-year old brother Dmytro hid in the basement of his house along with his wife (37) and two daughters (13 and 16). As soon as the curfew was lifted, they all decided to evacuate to a safer place. With only 15 minutes to leave their home, they gathered only the bare necessities and their beloved cat, Red. It took them four days to get to the Hungarian border by car and they’re especially grateful to the friends who welcomed them to stay overnight during their journey.
They finally crossed into Hungary and made their way to Germany.
They’re very worried about relatives that remain in Okhtyrka, a small city in Sumy Oblast that’s become a particularly dangerous region, constantly subjected to devastating artillery shelling and air bombing attacks.
