Kherson Evacuates Civilians Despite Ukrainian Win as Russia's Bombings Leave City Nearly Unlivable

Kherson civilians were evacuated from the city despite a Ukrainian win following Russia's continued and intensifying bombings that have left the region nearly unlivable.

On Sunday, the regional governor of Kherson, Yaroslav Yanushevych, said that Russian forces shelled the region 54 times in the past day, using what he called "terror tactics." He added that Moscow's troops "purposefully hit civilians in the region." The Ukrainian official noted that the strikes killed one resident and injured two others, including a child.

Kherson Evacuates Civilians

The situation comes two weeks after Russian military troops were withdrawn from the city of Kherson and other settlements on the western bank of the Dnipro river to the eastern bank. It was an attempt to avoid being cut off by the artillery of advancing Ukrainian military personnel.

Russian troops, after digging in on the eastern bank, were able to shell Kherson, which had a pre-war population of roughly 300,000, and other settlements in the region. Moscow's army used artillery, rocket launchers, and even mortars to conduct the strikes, as per Politico.

During the Russian military's retreat, troops destroyed or seriously damaged the energy, water supply, and communication infrastructure in the Kherson region. Following this, Ukrainian authorities have been focused on repairing them after the city's liberation.

In a separate post on social media on Sunday, Yanushevych said that power workers "have done the impossible." He noted that half a month after the liberation of the city of Kherson, electricity once again appeared in the region.

According to the New York Post, one resident in the area said that he was devastated that he had to leave, especially since the city had just been freed from Russian control. Yevhen Yankov said that it was said for them to leave their home as he rode in a van to evacuate Kherson.

Russia's Continued Shelling

Another resident, Svitlana Romanivna, who was also riding in the van, said that they went through hell. She noted that their neighborhood was burning, likening the situation to a nightmare, noting that everything was engulfed by flames.

One fleeing civilian added that the only option he had was to get out of the town and drove to his brother's home with his terrier on his lap. Vitaliy Nadochiy said that the day before yesterday, artillery struck their home. The strike burned down four flats and shattered the windows. He noted that there was no electricity, water, and heating due to the attacks.

Teams with the United Nations were rushing food, water, medicines, blankets, mattresses, and shelter materials to the under-siege city, a top UN official said. UN resident coordinator Denise Brown said that time was of the essence before the situation becomes an absolute catastrophe.

The line of trucks, vans, and cars, with some towing trailers or ferrying out pets and other belongings, stretched for roughly a kilometer or more on the outskirts of the besieged Ukrainian city. An emergency project coordinator for aid group Doctors Without Borders in Ukraine, Emilie Fourrey, said an evacuation began on Thursday for 400 patients of Kherson's psychiatric hospital, NPR reported.