Ylen’s Antti Kuronen got to Hersonissos to see the city left under the water masses.
HERSON The flood has risen high on the streets of the city of Kherson.
Officials allowed limited access to the flooded areas of the city. The assessment of the situation must be made quickly.
The water has risen drastically. The new beach is located half a kilometer from the Dnipro River in the middle of the city.
The water is so deep that you can’t wade in it. The area can be moved by boat or by swimming.
People are being evacuated in small rubber boats. They come and go all the time.
Elderly people with reduced mobility have been stuck in apartment buildings. An evacuation point has been created on the street. There are a lot of security officials and soldiers here, picking up elderly people from houses.
People have come to the place and tell about their friends who are stuck. They give instructions and addresses to rescue workers on how to get there.
Waiting for her husband on dry land Irina. He left under the flood yesterday, but returned now to get his cat. The man is searching the foreclosed home to see if the pet can be found.
– Is there a more stable boat here, he asks Hannah.
His grandmother is still in one of the houses. His relatives evacuated him from his home to another house yesterday, but the water has risen so much that now this house is also under water.
– My grandmother is on the second floor with her cats and dogs, Hanna says.
Blocks of the island completely covered in water
Svitlana says that he has four relatives and acquaintances in the middle of the water. They are all elderly women.
Rescuers have to carry elderly people from rubber boats when they reach the shore. These elderly people would have had no chance of saving themselves.
There is a large residential area located on an island in front of the city of Kherson, which is completely covered by water.
Igor says that he has three apartments in an apartment building, from which only the top floors are visible.
– Yesterday I lost three apartments. What can I say, he states.
Little information from the side occupied by Russia
Since yesterday, rescue personnel from Ukraine have arrived in the flooded areas. So far, the authorities have said that three people are missing.
On the Russian-occupied side of the Dnipro river, the situation is probably much worse. You don’t get much information from there. There are still pictures of the flooded villages.
In the areas occupied by Russia, rescue operations are inadequate. Russia has also blocked radio and telecommunications to prevent people from listening to Ukrainian radio channels.
The flood is expected to rise at least until next night, after which it will slowly begin to subside.