"The woman was screaming and begging for help": how 18-year-old young man helped rescue people from rubble in Kyiv

Ivan, an 18-year-old young man, helped rescue workers pull people from under the rubble of an apartment building in Kyiv's Dniprovskyi district, where part of the building collapsed after a Russian strike.

Source: Ukrainian public broadcaster hromadske

Details: Following the large-scale Russian missile attack on Kyiv, Ivan joined efforts to rescue people trapped beneath the rubble of the destroyed building.

Ivan lives near the scene of the strike. After the explosions, he and his father ran outside to find out what had happened.

Many of Ivan's friends live near the destroyed building, so he wanted to check whether they were safe.

Quote from Ivan: "I found my friends and, thank God, they were all right. Then I saw these terrible ruins and a few concerned people helping a small group of rescue workers from the State Emergency Service. Something just switched in my head; the fear disappeared. I simply put on gloves, helped a police officer lower a girl down and then started helping the rescue workers."

Details: Suddenly, Ivan heard screams coming from beneath the ruins of the building, and together with a rescue worker, he tried to dig out the trapped person. However, a concrete slab blocked access to the woman.

Quote from Ivan: "The woman was screaming terribly and begging for help. We started digging her out, and at that moment they began extinguishing the fire and a huge column of smoke came towards us.

We dug a small hole, climbed into it and started clearing small debris with our hands like dogs. We uncovered her right leg and then the left one. It was very difficult because the smoke made it hard to breathe and hurt my eyes. After we dug her out almost up to her torso, she stopped screaming."

Details: Rescue workers asked Ivan to keep talking to the woman so she would continue responding.

"At that moment I started having a nervous breakdown. I suddenly realised where I was; what was happening; that a person was trapped under the rubble, screaming and suffering. I was crying and still digging. Then a police officer grabbed me by the shoulder and said: 'Enough, step away.' After that, the rescue workers continued the work," Ivan said.

Eventually, the woman was pulled from the rubble alive. Rescue workers are still searching for her child and husband.

Background:

• On the night of 13-14 May, Russian forces carried out a large-scale attack on Ukrainian cities. The heaviest strike targeted Kyiv, where at least seven people were killed, including a 12-year-old girl.
• Part of a residential building collapsed in the Darnytskyi district as a result of the attack. Rescue workers are still searching the rubble for around 20 people.
• Other residential buildings and infrastructure were also damaged.

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