Mother shields son with her body: what is known about those injured in Russian attack on Ivano-Frankivsk

A woman whose husband and daughter were killed in Russia's 24 March attack is being discharged from a maternity hospital in Ivano-Frankivsk. Her newborn son will remain in hospital under doctors' supervision.

Source: Suspilne Ivano-Frankivsk, citing Oleksandra Skydanchuk, the deputy medical director of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Perinatal Centre

Details: According to Skydanchuk, the newborn son of the patient who lost her husband and 15-year-old daughter during the attack has jaundice and will therefore continue to remain under medical supervision.

She said that patients and staff at the maternity hospital went to a shelter during the air raid. The premises sustained minor damage as a result of the strike, but the hospital continues to operate as usual.

Five children were born at the oblast perinatal centre on the day of the Russian attack. Another five were born at the city maternity hospital.

Ivan Savka, medical director of Hospital No. 1, said that 55 windows at the facility were damaged as a result of the Russian attack.

Four people were taken to hospital with shrapnel and laceration injuries caused by the strike, two of whom were hospitalised.

Among those admitted was Nadiia Vozniak, who had a large fragment lodged in her leg measuring approximately 3 by 4 by 8 millimetres.

"It all happened in a second: I heard a sound and then an explosion straight away. Then stones and fragments started flying. It was frightening. I am a psychologist, and in such situations I can mobilise myself – I am very stress-resistant.

I realised I was alive, that I was fine, and that I had to move away because there could be a second strike. I was walking and saw that my trousers were soaked in blood," Nadiia recounted.

Doctors are planning to perform surgery to remove the fragment, which is lodged deep in the tissues near the femur.

"After this incident, I understand how important it is to go to shelters and not walk the streets [during air raids]. You always believe that nothing will happen. Yesterday I realised that I am not immortal and that I need to be more careful. People should also understand that they need to take care of themselves and their own safety."

Olha Haiko and her six-year-old son were also injured in the attack. They were approximately 10-15 metres from the site where the Russian UAV struck.

The woman said she did not hear the drone, but saw it in the sky.

"I reacted quickly and covered my child with my body – my son was riding a bicycle at the time. The explosion occurred as I lay on top of him," Olha said, adding that the blast wave threw both her and her son against a wall.

She recalled that after the strike there were many fragments around her and her son, which severely damaged their clothes – holes were found in her jacket, trousers and sweater.

Olha sustained a shrapnel wound to her leg, a burn and a scratch on her forehead. Her son was hospitalised in intensive care in a serious condition. Doctors found a fragment in his shoulder, a comminuted fracture of the parietal bone, a brain contusion and haemorrhage in the left hemisphere.

Ihor Dubyna, a neurosurgeon at the regional children's clinical hospital, said that after receiving medical assistance, the boy's condition is stable and his life is not in danger.

What is known about the 24 March attack?

On the night of 24 March, Russia attacked Ukrainian cities with 426 aerial weapons, including UAVs and cruise missiles. At least four people were killed across 11 oblasts of Ukraine as a result of the strikes.

The attacks continued during the day. In particular, Russian drones struck Lviv, where a house and an apartment building caught fire. The attack also damaged a national architectural landmark – the ensemble of the Bernardine Monastery.

Russian UAVs also targeted the centre of Ivano-Frankivsk, where the city and oblast maternity hospitals were damaged. Two people were killed in the attack – National Guard serviceman Volodymyr Shkrumeliak and his 15-year-old daughter Aneliia.

That day, they had come to visit their mother in the maternity hospital after she had given birth to a son a few days earlier.

Over the course of 24 hours, Russia launched nearly 1,000 drones at Ukraine. Fifteen direct hits were recorded.

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