‘We couldn’t do anything for them’ – medics speak out after a strike on a village close to the frontline
Elena Bulakhtina was on the way back to her medical clinic when a cluster bomb screamed across the sky. There was a bang, then two seconds later a series of detonations, as deadly shrapnel whizzed through the air. Bulakhtina, a doctor, flung herself to the ground. She made it to her workplace basement just as a second bomb exploded, and then a third.
Not everyone was as lucky. The Russian attack took place on Tuesday afternoon, in the once peaceful village of Hrushivka, about 8km away from the frontline in the north-east of Ukraine. A few locals were standing next to a generator, where they were able to charge their phones and check emails. Pensioner Nikolai Koliyenko was sitting on a bench outside his house. It was overcast.
