The escalator sinks into the bowels of Kharkiv. The metro station is very deep. It is undoubtedly the safest place in the city to protect oneself from the bombardments. Downstairs, dozens of people have taken refuge.
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It is one of the most bombed Ukrainian cities by Russian forces: Kharkiv, in the east of the country, was largely destroyed by the war. the secondth largest city in the country undergoes incessant strikes which still cause many deaths every day. The Russian army is at the gates of the city. But this morning, in the subway, some drink coffee, others barely wake up or are still asleep.
Aliona is already up. This mother has lived here since the start of the war with her husband and three children. “Our building was bombed and almost completely destroyed. We were not at home, only my eldest daughter was in the apartment. It happened on March 2 and for us it’s like a second birth. She was thrown by the blast of the explosion but was only slightly injured by the shards of glass. It’s the same for everyone here, it’s difficult, painful. We are constantly thinking about the future. Where can we go? We are all the same. It’s the scariest.“, she sighs.
The city of Kharkiv has lived under Russian bombs since the first day of the conflict: constant shelling, which has left more than 500 dead. “JI don’t even have words to describe it. It’s sadism. They are trying to kill us all… Women, children, it’s terrible.“, says Aliona, her teeth clenched.
The corridors of the metro are cluttered with boxes of clothes, bottles of water, food products. Some residents sleep in tents, but most are settled in the two trains at the station. Anastasia is one of the volunteers coordinating the help at this subway station. She opens one of the doors of a car plunged into darkness. It is still night for some: the benches have been transformed into beds, the clothes piled up on seats.
“People live with their children and with their pets, like cats, dogs. I even saw a rabbit. It’s awful. But here, at least, it’s a safe place. We don’t really have a choice if we want to save our life, our health. So we have to use this place as a shelter.”, smiles sadly Anastasia.
Depending on the intensity of the shelling, between 100 and 2000 people can spend the night in this metro station. To avoid fighting, residents of Kharkiv even use tunnels to get around town.