Heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces over the past week for Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region, has forced many nearby residents to flee their homes.
On December 1, Russia claimed to have captured Pokrovsk. However, the Ukrainian military said the next day that fighting centered on the key logistics hub was still ongoing.
The fierce battle to take and retake Pokrovsk has raised great fears among nearby residents about safety, with many deciding to leave before their town becomes a war zone.
In Pavlohrad, a city about 100 km away from Pokrovsk, a transit center has been established as one of the first stops for local residents fleeing the Donetsk region, providing a short break for weary evacuees to warm themselves up, register and figure out where to go next.
"They're flying drones over people. It's terrifying. Every day you lie down and think whether you will get through the window or not, whether you will stay well. Every single day, from morning to evening, you can hear Kostiantynivka (a city in the Donetsk region), and we're being shelled too," said Tatiana, a civilian passing through the transit center.
Though most arrive at the center by bus, others arrive by ambulance. Many more are unable to come at all as evacuations in some areas stall.
"Now, most people are being evacuated in the Mezhiv community [in the Dnipropetrovsk region]. For several weeks now there have been no evacuees coming from the Pokrovsk community itself, because the security situation doesn't allow teams to enter the community," said Evgenya Pinchuk, supervisor of East SOS, a Ukrainian non-governmental relief foundation.
Heavy fighting between Ukraine, Russia for eastern logistics hub triggers mass evacuations
Heavy fighting between Ukraine, Russia for eastern logistics hub triggers mass evacuations
