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Survival on the Donbas frontlines
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Special to The Ukrainian Weekly
PISKY, Ukraine – Hryhoryi, 54, and his wife, Halyna, 52, began living in their basement in the village of Pisky in mid-July 2014, when pro-Russian separatists attacked for the first time. They carried down their beds and sacks of potatoes, and are heating the concrete-walled cellar with a stove. Firewood isn’t a problem after many trees were felled by shells; candles and kerosene lamps provide lighting. Since then, the frontline between them and Ukrainian forces has crossed through the village numerous times, leaving devastation in its wake. Its population of more than 2,000 has dwindled to only 70 – mostly elderly folks who have no place to go or simply don’t want to leave the only place they’ve ever lived.