They are first aiders, psychologists or photographers and all work for the civil security of the Ukrainian capital. With the war, their rescue operations changed in scale. They have become heroes.
From our special correspondent in kyiv,
Here on a ladder leading into the bowels of a gutted building still smoking, there comforting an injured woman after a strike… In a year, we have become accustomed to these images of men and women, white helmets on their heads, rescuing populations in the midst of chaos. They are the first on the scene when a missile hits a civilian building. Since February 24, 2022, members of the Kyiv State Emergency Service (SES) have carried out 125 war-related interventions and rescued 134 people.
Svitlana Vodolaha is head of the press service of the SES in Kyiv. She is often the one who immortalizes these scenes. The first time she accompanied her colleagues was in a sixteen-story apartment building hit by a missile. ” You know, in our work, we only encounter misfortune, she points out. Explosions, fires, I knew. We had, every five or seven years, an accident related to gas for example. But not on this scale: there, a whole building was affected, from the fifth to the ninth floor, everything had collapsed. That doesn’t normally happen. His work does not change. ” When I arrived there, my only thought was: we must fix everything, we must record everything so that the whole world can see. Even if it seems weird, the important thing is to convey all this horror, that we see what the Russians are doing “, she asserts.
“ We spent two months here, we slept together, we lived together »
The kyiv SES lost one of its members in service. A barracks chief called in the early hours of the war with two colleagues to put out a fire at Hostomel airport, the scene of violent fighting. “Even though everyone knows that firefighters everywhere in the world do not carry weapons, their truck was strafed », explains Svitlana Vodolaha. Two other rescue workers were injured in this attack.
When war breaks out, for these emergency professionals too, it’s a shock. But everyone is quickly on deck. “On February 24, 90% of our workforce came to work, whereas normally there is a turnover “, testifies Ihor Mykhnenko, the head of civil security for the entire district of Podil, in the center of the capital.
Normally, the members of the SES have a rhythm with 24 hours of duty followed by three days of rest. Most of them do not live in kyiv. Impossible to go back and forth, so life is organized on site in the offices and in the basements of the barracks. “ We spent two months here, we slept together, we lived togetherhe recalls. And we waited for the calls : if we were called for an intervention, even if the alert had not yet been lifted and we still heard the knocks, we went there. »
Intervention in retroville shopping center, in the northwest of kyiv, targeted by Russian forces, remains among the most significant for the team. Eight thousand square meters of buildings pulverized. ” It was really complicated, hard to get to, with a nine-storey tower on fire, in the middle says Oleksandre Koutcher, a 25-year-old rescuer. We couldn’t approach the cranes so we had to proceed with simple ladders. “Probably under the effect of heat, explosions” secondary occur a few minutes after help arrives. ” Luckily everyone got away with it. comments Ihor Mykhnenko, but it was really scary. Many people were trapped under the rubble and they had to be found quickly. It took us ten hours to bring the fire under control. “Result of this strike: at least eight dead.
Dealing with the unknown and bulletproof vests
Even if the management of risk and dramatic events is part of their job, this time it is different. War is an explosion whose shock wave spares no one. ” Before, I knew that I could intervene in a tragic accident, then walk ten meters, have a coffee and take a breather, says Lyubov Kirnos, head of the psychological support department for the State Emergency Service. But when you see a building hit by a drone shot or a missile, you understand that you won’t be able to change the mood by turning around the corner. People everywhere are in shock. » Rescuers must be very resistant to stress and very stable psychologically as a rule. But with war comes fear for their loved ones. ” I think living together was essential in this moment, it allowed them to support each other, she analyzes. And when the situation stabilized, they were given the opportunity to take leave to be able to evacuate their loved one. It was very important so that they could continue to work as calmly as possible. »
” The most difficult for me is the unknown, it’s the most exhausting in this war, says Oleksandre Koutcher. Today for example, we had an alert, we don’t know what could have happened and I don’t know what could happen to me in a few minutes. »
Even if the heart of their job has not changed, saving people, their working conditions have changed a lot. The risks have also changed in scale, so we must be extra careful. Bulletproof vests and helmets are now part of the panoply.
It was also necessary to review all the prevention campaigns aimed at the population, to adapt them to the reality of war, explains Svitlana Vodolaha, whose mission it is. Train people to know how to behave in the face of these new risks. “ In the first weeks of the war, the city was emptied of its inhabitants – it is estimated that about 30% of the population remained, develops the press officer. In the buildings, only the elderly or disabled remained, who did not always descend into the shelters in the event of strikes. As first aiders, we have to check all apartments to make sure they are empty. It’s protocol. So, for example, we disseminated information to people who remained in the capital to be vigilant about who lived where so as not to waste time. Those who were leaving were also asked to leave their keys with the neighbors so as not to have to break down the doors. It doesn’t seem like much, but it’s very important. »
From March 9 to 17, the teams take care of 3,600 people at kyiv station. They fled through the “green corridor” the occupied areas of Irpin, Boutcha or even Tchernihiv. ” Some arrived in pajamas, others with bloody clothes, some are traumatized, still others could be euphoric to have survived and managed to leave “recalls the psychologist. Every hour the crowd increases. Civil security directs people according to their needs and explains to them that the station is not the end of the journey. “ They thought they were safe but they had to be made to understand that they couldn’t stay here and relax because kyiv was also hit, that they had to leave as soon as possible. », stresses Lyubov Kirnos.
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“ you survived »
Among the treatments that marked her, she remembers one case. It was March 18. A missile has just fallen in a playground in the middle of buildings in a circle. All the windows around were blown out. “ And there was this woman who was in deep distress, reports the psychologist. She had been fleeing the war since 2014 because she came from the East. kyiv was already the third city she had taken refuge in to start her life over. Before, she was in Mariupol. But each time, she was like caught up. To treat these new traumatic pathologies, the professional, ten years of experience in civil security, exchanges with Israeli colleagues. ” In the case of this ladyshe says, the important thing was to listen to her and explain to her that she had to have enough strength to rebuild her life once again. In this type of trauma, victims often no longer have clear memories of the events. We have to help them to redo the thread of what happened, it’s very important to end the story, with the positive: “you survived”. »
Making sense of the absurdity of war. From April 6 to 13, the situation is calmer in the capital, the Kiev teams will lend a hand to the rescuers of the region in Borodianka. The city has just been liberated. The detachment is responsible for searching the rubble of five apartment buildings. “ At the start of the war, recalls Svitlana Volodaha, we received calls from people in these buildings, stuck in the cellars. They were asking us for help but unfortunately we couldn’t do anything because the city was occupied by the Russians. Airborne bombs were dropped on these buildings, they were deliberately targeted “, she insists. More than a month after these bombings, the chances of finding buried survivors are almost nil. “ There was a couple: they were looking for their son, their daughter-in-law and their 4-year-old granddaughter. years. And they convinced themselves that they were there, still alive, they assured us that they had been passing them food all this time… Our psychologists were at their side when we started to take the bodies out.
In one year, the war has shone a spotlight on the work of these everyday heroes. ” For me, the most striking thing is the way people look at us. In the street, now, we are greeted, we see the recognition of the populations, it is very pleasant », recognizes Oleksandre Koutcher. The State Emergency Service even had a large format calendar printed in their glory. The victory is also played out on the communication front. In Svitlana Volodaha’s office, a mattress is always leaning against the wall. ” The war is not over yet she smiles.
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