Frontline Antonivka: ‘Explosions are like crickets to us’

Before the war, more than 13,000 people lived here. Now there are about 5,000 left, including 200 children. The youngest Antonivka resident is only two weeks old. Since the de-occupation of Kherson, the village has been under constant shelling: enemy positions are across the river. Most of the housing stock in Antonivka is damaged. The houses closest to the Dnipro River are the most affected. There has been no electricity for almost 10 months, and water supply is on schedule. Despite this, over 1,000 people remain in the most dangerous part of the village. They refuse to be evacuated and are not leaving their homes.

Ukrinform correspondents visited the most destroyed part of Antonivka and learned about the lives of people who can see the temporarily ‘enemy’ houses from the windows of their own ones.

TREATS FOR PETS

We arrived in the village together with volunteers who brought food for stray animals. At the entrance to Antonivka, we can already hear the sounds of explosions – enemy artillery is at work. Our driver is driving off-road at almost a hundred kilometres: it is important to get past the Antonivka Bridge as soon as possible, because this area is visible from the right bank. According to the volunteers, vehicles are constantly coming under fire here.

Having reached the local Point of Unbreakability, we breathe a sigh of relief and start taking out some goodies for the furry residents of the settlement.

‘There are a lot of abandoned animals just running around the streets. Volunteers bring food, and we feed them. Recently, the alley nearby was shelled. The house was hit, which is fine, we get that, but the yard dog was also hit by the debris. We couldn’t find anyone to take the poor thing to the veterinary clinic. In the end, I did it. The dog was paralysed and had to be rescued for 10 days.

Animals did nothing wrong, but they suffer a lot’, says Tetiana Yaroshenko, head of the Point of Unbreakability.

The Point of Unbreakability was set up in the medical unit. Residents of 653 houses come here for humanitarian aid and hot food. There are also two nurses here who dispense medicines to people.

The village has almost no service, and people have to do something to get the mobile phone signal.

WORKING UNDER FIRE

‘We serve 653 houses, which is about 1,200 people. Among them are 75 people with reduced mobility, and about 25 are children. We are shelled several times a day. They shoot from artillery and basically anything that can reach us. Enemy drones are constantly in the air. Yesterday, we were giving food from nine in the morning. The Russians saw a large crowd of people and started shooting. They hit a school, a playground, a stadium. There were about 9 hits in total, and we had to close because it was dangerous to continue working. People were left without a hot lunch’, says Tetiana.

We ask the woman how she manages to work in such conditions and why she doesn’t move to a quieter place. She answers what Ukrainians who have roots in their dear land usually say.

‘We are scared. Very much. You never know what awaits you in a moment. But this is our land, and we don’t want to go anywhere. We will stay on our land as long as we can. We go to church every Sunday. We pray’, says Tetiana.

During our conversation, it becomes loud again: the village is being shelled for the third time today.

According to Tetiana, their Point and its employees have already come under fire many times.

‘Opposite our building is a former post office. We used it as a warehouse to store humanitarian aid.

On 8 May this year, it was hit. The roof broke through, a fire broke out, and all the aid burned down’, the woman recalls.

THERE IS NO POSSIBILITY TO INSTALL A MOBILE SHELTER

There is no shelter at the Point of Unbreakability, so during enemy attacks, the workers use the two-wall rule to stay safe.

There was talk of installing a mobile bomb shelter here, but the process of transporting it is very dangerous. It requires a large crane, which will be immediately shelled’, explains Tetiana.

Among the Point of Unbreakability employees, Iryna, a clerk, was seriously injured during the shelling on 8 May 2023, and Serhii Ivashchenko, the village chief of Antonivka, was also hit by shrapnel.

‘It was on 8 May. We received a batch of humanitarian aid from Spain and were distributing it to people. The shelling started. Our warehouse across the road was hit. We sent people home and decided to call it a day. At that time, there were only me, Tetiana, Iryna, the clerk, and another older man who could not walk well. We closed the Point, put the older man in the car, and then it hit. If the older man had walked a little faster, we might have managed to leave in time. The shell exploded next to our car. I was hit by shrapnel, but my wound was not serious. The clerk though was hit hard by shrapnel, mostly her head and stomach. Luckily, Iryna survived, but she is still undergoing rehabilitation’, recalls Serhii Ivashchenko.

IN THE DESTROYED VILLAGE, ALL HOPE IS WITH UTILITY WORKERS AND VOLUNTEERS

According to the village chief, about 5,000 people continue to live in the settlement, including 200 children.

‘We have a family where a child was born two weeks ago. They are staying in Antonivka. We are explaining to all people, especially families with children, that it is not safe to stay here. But there is no forced evacuation, so we continue to conduct psychological work with the population’, Mr Ivashchenko says.

Mr Ivashchenko also told us that 50% of the village’s housing stock was damaged, and if we take into account the broken windows, this figure increases significantly. The village council provides the residents of the affected houses with building materials for urgent repairs: film, OSB sheets, and boards with slate to cover the roofs. Given that most residents are pensioners, utility companies and volunteers are helping them with repairs.

The administrative building of the village council was destroyed, windows were smashed, the ceilings were partially destroyed, and the roof was blown up. During the shelling on 13 September 2023, gymnasium No. 21, better known as the Green School, sustained significant damage. The facade, roof, windows, and equipment of the gymnasium were damaged. The Green School was opened in 2016.

The peculiarity of this school is that it was built according to European energy-saving principles, which was made possible with the financial support of the Finnish government and local budget funds. 

Finland allocated EUR 2.4 million to construct a special modular structure, which is the school’s frame.

The head of Antonivka’s village council noted that the school also suffered from flooding after the hydroelectric power station was blown up.

‘The whole building has sunk in there. The walls are cracked, and all the equipment is destroyed.

The school will most likely need major reconstruction’, says Serhii Ivashchenko.

NO WATER AND ELECTRICITY, BUT PLENTY OF FOOD AND CLOTHING

As for water and electricity, the part of Antonivka that is behind the bridge is cut off from the benefits of civilisation.

‘There has been no electricity there for 10 months. Electrician crews refuse to come and repair power lines and other equipment. The gas service repairs its own lines and equipment, but the power company does not. They argue that it is dangerous because of the shelling. The power supply stops in the area of Molodizhnyi Beach. About 2,000 households are without electricity, and people live in 1,200 of them. Without electricity, the pump at the well does not work. We are powering it from generators and supplying water to homes on schedule. The part of Antonivka where there is electricity has water around the clock’, explains the village chief.

We ask the man what other services work in Antonivka.

‘There are utility service providers from Parks of Kherson. They remove garbage and mow the grass.

The gas service is also working. The water utility is also repairing its lines. The police are working, too, of course. Ambulances and the State Emergency Service, too. During the shelling, firefighters do not respond to calls, again, because of the danger. That’s why we try to distribute fire extinguishers directly to people, because fires occur frequently’, emphasises Serhii Ivashchenko.

Mr Ivashchenko notes that despite the difficulties, the settlement has started preparing for the winter.

‘We have enough food and clothes. A lot of it was brought in after the flood. It came to us from all over the world. The most urgent problem is the power supply. We also need firewood, briquettes, and coal. They promise to provide us with these, but so far, we have nothing. I hope we will not be forgotten. We need potbelly stoves as a safety net in case a gas pipe is hit, and people are left without a gas supply. Last year we distributed about 300 potbelly stoves and over 100 cubic metres of firewood. And 300 generators. But some people received the devices and left the village. This is human nature. We live and wait for the Victory’, says Serhii Ivashchenko.

I DECIDED TO WASH THE DISHES FIRST, AND THAT SAVED MY LIFE

During our stay in Antonivka, the yard of Oleksii and Liudmyla’s family was destroyed by an enemy shell. It hit the shed where they stored their equipment. The shrapnel pierced the generator’s petrol tank, so the device no longer works. The explosion also killed almost all the chickens the family had.

According to Oleksii, this is the third time shelling has hit their house.

‘It’s a good thing we didn’t put in windows from the last time. Otherwise, everything would have blown out. And the roof was well hit in the past. Now, look — a circular saw, a generator — everything is smashed. And it doesn’t belong to us, we have to hand it over later’, says the owner.

Meanwhile, Liudmyla is crying over the dead fowl. When it was hit, the lady was working in the kitchen.

‘It’s called “God’s providence”. At this time, I usually work in the garden, right here in front of the shed. But today I decided to wash the dishes first. And then there was a bang, everything went up in smoke. I was shocked and crying. I’m even afraid to tell my children. They have been persuading us to leave for a long time. But my mother is here; she is 85 years old. She cannot walk because of her hip. How can we go anywhere? We will not leave her’, Liudmyla cries.

Our conversation is accompanied by the sound of shelling.

‘Is their country so rich that they waste expensive shells on our sheds? When we were invaded, there were always social ads on TV calling for people to donate money to treat some children in Russia. Millions of dollars are being shot at us, and they are asking for donations. Don’t shoot at us, and your children will have enough money’, the woman says.

After visiting Oleksii and Liudmyla’s house, we returned to our car, which we had left by the Point of Unbreakability. We asked if any of the workers would be willing to drive around the village with us and show us the destruction. There were no volunteers, because cars are often shelled.

‘It’s very restless now; the streets are empty, no one is walking. But I’m going to call our volunteer Serhii, he’s a daredevil, he might agree’, says Tetiana.

Ten minutes later, a young man on a bicycle arrived. Serhii readily agreed to be our ‘guide’, but on the condition that he would ride a bike and we would follow him in the car. The man jokes that we are now in a ‘quiet neighbourhood’, but he lives near the Antonivskyi Bridge, which is ‘not friendly’ anymore.

‘I’m not a coward, but I lived in the basement throughout the winter last year because the shelling was too heavy. In winter, it’s great in the basement: you can fire up your potbelly stove and it’s perfect. In summer, it’s too damp to stay there. Everything flies here: drones, ‘Uragans’. It’s the war.

Antonivka used to be the coolest neighbourhood. And now it has been made so bad that people are afraid to even talk about it’, the man says.

Before the war, Serhii worked as a builder, and now he volunteers. He takes care of people with reduced mobility, delivers them food and basic necessities, helps with repairs, and so on.

IF THE LORD IS WILLING, I’LL LIVE. IF THE LORD IS WILLING, I’LL DIE

Serhii took us to see his ‘ward’ Nina Vasylivna. Trying to quickly fix up her hair, the woman is very happy to see the guests. She says she wants her grandchildren in Poland to read our article and see that their grandmother is beautiful.

‘My darlings, you are travelling here and not afraid. This is the way to tell about the war’, Nina Vasylivna says to us.

Her children and grandchildren moved to Poland. As she puts it, ‘thanks to my tears’.

‘They left during the occupation on the last day when they were still allowed to leave. They wanted to take me with them, they even bought some diapers. But I flatly refused. I will stay here, that’s it. If the Lord is willing, I’ll live. If the Lord is willing, I’ll die My son was coming to me and crying for a month. And now I’m glad they left. My son is 60 years old. Volunteers are also offering me to leave and go to Mykolaiv, to Khmelnytskyi. My answer is, “I’ll go nowhere”! I will stay home!’ the woman says.

According to Nina Vasylivna, none of her neighbours and friends in Antonivka supported the Russians during the so-called ‘elections’ in September last year.

‘No one here voted for them during the ‘referendum’! Once, they came to me with machine guns.

“Lady, who will you vote for?” they asked. I said, “Do I have a choice?” If the Americans came withmachine guns, I would vote for the Americans, if the armed Chinese came, I would vote for the Chinese, but you came with machine guns, I will vote for Ukraine! Otherwise, my ancestors will not accept me in the afterlife’, Nina Vasylivna emphasises.

We notice the old lady’s windows, which are boarded up with plywood. These are the consequences of the shelling. The last time it blew up, the pensioner was resting in the next room and was not affected.

‘When there are explosions, I don’t hide anywhere, I stay in the house. Even if I get into the basement, I won’t be able to get out. When the windows blew out, I was in the bedroom. I believe in God and say my prayers three times a day. I ask him to protect all our soldiers who are fighting for us in Ukraine. Poor children, please be alive!’ the woman cries at the mention of Ukraine’s defenders.

According to Nina Vasylivna, the emergency services in the village respond quickly. Immediately upon the shelling, gas workers and the police came to her house to record the damage.

‘Our local authorities are very decent and responsible. And our village chief, Serhii Serhiiovych. And all the volunteers. They gave me these sticks, so I can move around with them. My gas is broken, so they gave me two cylinders for the stove. They say they will also give me firewood. Last year, they gave us a little bit. We are well provided for here, they send us humanitarian aid’, adds Nina Vasylivna.

We involuntarily duck at the explosion sound, which seemed to have occurred almost in the yard.

Nina Vasylivna did not even move.

‘You kids are afraid. We are not afraid of anything here anymore. We can already tell by the sound

when our people are firing and when the enemy is. We are used to it. Explosions are like crickets to us’, the pensioner jokes.

Antonivka has become like an extinct village: blackened by fires, ruins of wealthy houses, torn electric wires, hungry abandoned animals with burnt faces and unbearable silence around broken by explosion crickets.

However, people do not lose hope for the best.

‘We need Victory above all else’, we hear from almost everyone we talked to here.

Hanna Bodrova, Odesa

Photos by Nina Liashonok